Black as Knight
by Kaitaru Stark-Laufeyson
Summary: Roronoa Zoro, leader of the Mugiwara gang who controls half of London, buried his past. But that past is in danger of resurfacing when he starts to get into trouble with MI5 and starts to fall in love with the British princess. Said trouble only gets worse when rival gang leader of the Kali gang, Sanji, takes it that one step further into mayhem. Will Zoro become the Black Knight?
1. Chapter 1

**Black as Knight.**

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_***INSERT WONDERFUL, BEAUTIFUL AND MAGNIFICENT FIREWORKS THAT ACCOMPANY A HUGE GREAT SIGN THAT SAYS 'DISCLAIMER - THE AUTHOR OF THIS FANFIC DOES NOT AND NEVER WILL OWN ONE PIECE.'***_

IMPORTANT AUTHORS NOTE:

_**Ok, I've set this in a...kind of 'Old London'...but I don't really know London all that well, because it's a big place. So PLEASE...Don't try to correct me if I'm wrong on something, because for all I know (which isn't a lot, but hey.), I've probably got all of my facts wrong.**_

_**In addition, this is a fanfic, and I've made things totally...weird in the sense that not everyone is in the 'friendship groups'. So for example, not all the Mugiwara's are togeher, and not all of them are good.**_

_**Also, so that people don't get confused, Chopper and Ussop are the versions from two years later, but are still the same age as they were BEFORE the two years. So...the **__**appearance of two years later, but the same age from beforethe two years...Ok? **__**(Basically, Ussop finally gained his abs, and Chopper can transform into a fully-grown deer.)**_

_**This is a 'Gang' kind of fic...It's hard to explain.**_

_**So just use your imagination.**_

_**Throughout this fic, there will be love, humour, friendship, family, violence, spanking (in a parental tone), whipping and a mixture of other stuff, but nothing that could move this rating up to an M. =)**_

_**Having said this, enjoy the fic, and PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW! ^^D  
**_

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It was dark. The leaves of the trees that were scattered far and few around St. James park rustled in the slight breeze that slowly drifted through them, the only light being the candle lit lamps, and the light of the crescent moon as it waned. Silence rained upon them in the cool night air, making the surroundings seem slightly eerie. But the peaceful park was far from deserted.

Sitting or standing around a single wooden bench, were nine silhouetted figures, hidden by the night.

A thin, almost raggedy figure was stood beside another slim figure, and his large black afro stood out against the suit that just hung off of his skeletal frame, the lights casting shadows into the empty eyesockets of his gleaming skull. The figure beside him had a small pineapple of yellow hair, and was stood with his arms folded over his chest.

Another, larger man who had huge great forearms and a cyan blue ducktail was stood with his hands on his hips proudly, and the man who was sat down on the grass beside him on one side had his own blue hair tied back in a ponytail and a large red nose, giving him a clown-like appearance. The man on the giant's other side, looked like a rather weak-willed man with his long blonde hair and a thin narrow black band that shielded his eyes.

A dangerous looking pale yet muscular man whose bright red hair resembled flames, had black circles around his dark red eyes and dark purple lips, grinned wickedly as he pointed his finger at a girl whose light blue hair was tied back in a high ponytail, magnetising her earring as he tried to pull it away from her ear.

The girl glared at him in annoyance, and flicked a small knife at him which she had quickly withdrawn from her sleeve. Her friend who had necklength dark blue hair let her hand trace the scabbard of her katana as she snorted in amusement, adjusting her glasses with the otherhand.

The man with the flame coloured hair merely repelled the small knife at a slim figure who was casually leaning up against a tree, hugging a katana close to him and pulling his white and brown spotted northen-style hat up out of the way of his eyes, simultaneously moving his head slightly to the left so that the dagger embedded itself into the tree beside his head.

"Cut it out Kidd...My patience runs thin."

"Don't make it worse Kidd, I can already feel the wind starting to brew up a storm."

"Why are you blaiming me Vivi? Shut your laughing trap Tashigi."

"Yohohoho~, tempers are running high, ne Marco?"

"Hm...Brook."

"I swear 'hm' is all the flashy bastard ever says."

"Shut up Buggy, I don't recall anything about you being so suuuuper."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY ABOUT MY NOSE BE-"

"H-Hush Buggy."

"Why now, Helmeppo?"

"L-Law is giving you the calculating death glare."

A slim man in a dark blue suit who was about the age of seventeen, was sat on the bench with his arm stretched out along the back of it, lazily taking a long drag of his lit cigarette as his blonde hair blew into his face a little in the wind.

"I don't think he's coming, Sanji." Kidd said, magnetising the dagger out of the wood from where it was still stuck in the tree beside Trafalgar Law's head.

"Shh." Brook suddenly hissed, cocking his skeletal head to the left slightly, looking as though he was listening.

Kidd bristled, glaring at the gentleman skeleton. "Don't tell me to shush, you bony-"

"SHH." Brook hissed more violently. "I can hear them coming." He added this time, making everyone stop. Law raised his head. Buggy and Helmeppo stood up, as did Tashigi and Vivi. Franky, Brook and Marco moved to stand behind Sanji, who merely closed his eyes and inhaled another breath of his cigarette.

Three dark silhouettes approached them, making no sound as they walked across the grass to meet the ten who had been waiting for them. The two who flanked the middle man looked vaguely similar. Neck length black hair, very slightly tanned skin, the same eyes and both wore hats.

The one on the left who was clearly the oldest of the three, as he had a little more muscle to him, which was shown by the absence of his top, and he had freckles along his cheekbones. But he wore simple black ankle boots and a pair of brown khaki shorts, and the red beads around his neck were accompanied by an orange cowboy hat with two theatre faces on them, which had a string attatched to it to prevent it from falling off.

The boy on the right looked slightly younger and wore a red vest-like top, jean-shorts with fluffy edges at the knees, and wore a straw-hat with a red ribbon around it, which also had a string attatched to it to keep it from falling off. He looked somewhat badass, due to a small scar that was located just underneath his left eye that had not healed properly, looking like his scar had two stitches going through it.

Finally, the third guy had short green hair and was dressed in black boots, black trousers, a white t-shirt, a green and black striped bellywarmer, a black leather jacket, and had a set of three dangling gold earrings in his left ear. He had a sinister look about him as he tightened his grip on the three katanas that he kept strapped to his waist, but it may have been due to the fact that he really did _not _want to be there.

"Oi, Ace, Luffy. Not a word during this exchange, you hear me?"

The two on either side of him nodded once.

"Yup, we got it." Luffy answered, grinning slightly as they approached.

They stopped a few meters short of the larger group as a few odd rain droplets started to fall, making a slight slapping sound on the leaves of the trees that they fell onto.

"Ahhh, you finally got here. I must say, you've let your standards drop. I heard that you killed a couple of innocents the other day." Sanji smirked. "Tut tut, I thought you were against all that. Perhaps they annoyed you a little too much, maybe?"

"What do you want, curly-brow?" The middle man asked, sounding slightly irritated and clearly wanting to move on from the subject.

Sanji breathed out his cigarette smoke and opened his eyes to look at the man in front of him. "Just a little talk with you on territory, Zoro."

There was a tense silence.

"You dare try to negotiate on me giving up territory and I will kick your arse here and now yo-" Zoro growled, his hand straying to one of his katanas.

"On the contrary, Marimo." Sanji cut in, waving a hand dismissively and taking another quick drag on his cigarette. Zoro clenched his jaw angrily.

Sanji started to talk once more. "It seems that this morning, your long-nosed friend was caught pickpocketing...on our turf."

To Zoro's left, Ace closed his eyes and groaned quietly. 'Ussop', he cursed mentally, thinking of the tanned, long nosed slim teenager with curly, black hair. Zoro mentally vowed to kick the kid's arse later. Luffy meanwhile, looked slightly worried for his friend, and having forgotton what Zoro had told him earlier, balled his hands into fists.

"So what if he did? What's the problem? Eh?" He yelled, anything else he tried to say suddenly muffled as Ace quickly managed to clamp a hand over his brother's mouth.

"What of it, Ero-cook." Zoro said emotionlessly, making Sanji's eye twitch slightly.

"Whatever he stole, belongs to me. I want it back, Marimo." Sanji returned, making Zoro's eye twitch.

Luffy raised the volume of his voice so as to be heard, if not slightly muffled, through Ace's hand. "DON'T DO IT ZORO." He yelled.

"And if I don't?" Zoro asked, choosing to ignore Luffy.

"I take his life. Tit for tat really..." Sanji stated bluntly, leaning back into the bench as the random water droplets started to fall a little heavier, but not hard enough to be considered as rain.

"Fine. You leave us alone, we give back whatever it was he took, and neither of us take even a tiny step over the boundaries of eachother's territory." Zoro sighed at last, his patience starting to run thin for having been in his rival's company for so long.

"Perhaps...on the subject of territor-" Sanji said cautiously.

"TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT SANJI." Zoro roared, his dark eyes glinting dangerously.

Sanji stared at him calculatingly. "Fine then. Lets say twelve o'clock in St. James' square. Done?" He questioned, standing up and extending his hand out towards Zoro as the rain started to properly fall out of the sky. Ace tensed, ready to jump in at any moment.

"Done." Zoro agreed, taking Sanji's hand and shaking it once before dropping it, turning his back on the cook and walking back out of the park at a quick authorative pace, taking Ace and Luffy with him as they followed at a slight jog.

"Are you sure about this, Zoro?" Luffy asked.

"Yep. Just make sure I don't kick Ussop's arse too hard when we get back." Zoro muttered as he followed Ace, who was quickly navigating the streets for him, since he was a bit of a directional retard, and he knew it.

"Sure thing." Ace muttered as they entered the darker streets of London. The ones that no one dared to be out in after dark, save for Zoro and his crew.

Then again, the seven of them were the main reason for this. They were known throughout London as the Mugiwara gang, who were led by Zoro, and they were rivaled by the Kali gang, who were led by Sanji.

Zoro had a more laid back nature, and was content not to hurt anybody within his territory, which was at least half of London, unless they threatened either himself or his friends. They had no money apart from the money that they pick-pocketed, so naturally they didn't do too badly thanks to Nami, who despite being the only girl in the gang, was light fingered. However Zoro's laid back nature did not mean that he was in any way a soft guy, on the contrary, he avoided killing as much as possible, as that meant having to clear up the tracks, which was more Ace's forté, but his temper was something to be feared in London, and his quick wits had stayed him out of trouble with the authorities.

Whereas Sanji considered himself to be cooler and more of a ladies man, even though they often rejected him. His main base was rumoured to be a stack of flats somewhere near the middle of his territory, but it was known that he controlled his gang mostly by fear. The same going for his territory, which was the other half of London that Zoro hadn't claimed when the old gang leader that had all but controlled London, Gol.D Roger, had been captured and jailed for life about two years before, and his first in command having disappeared without a trace.

Sanji was more ruthless, and preferred to hide behind his subordinates, only getting involved in a fight if Zoro happened to be present, using his feet to fight, since he liked to cook. However, his main source of killing when someone in his territory displeased him, was by adding a certain 'flavour' to the food. They were often found dead before they had even finished the meal.

On the contrary, Zoro's base of operations, hadn't even been heard in rumours.

Why?

Simply because nobody knew.

But as Luffy, Ace and Zoro approached a large, rundown warehouse, they grinned at each other, picking up the pace as they headed towards it. Luffy ran ahead through the rain that was pelting down on them and took out a key, quickly opening the door that was concealed around the side of the building and ushering Zoro and Ace in before following them in and closing the door, locking it again behind him.

Dripping wet and aching, Zoro shook his short hair to get rid of some of the water, flinging droplets everywhere as his earrings clinked together merrily in quiet. "Home sweet home." He said with a grin.

The warehouse was full of boxes that were either scattered around the floor, or piled high on shelves that needed ladders to reach them. Metal work tables were also shoved around the room, as were a few stools or chairs. All of this was lit up by the dim lights that hung down from the ceiling in rows, lighting the aisles of boxes, or empty space that was devoid of anything in the centre of the warehouse.

Ace led them over to the back of the warehouse, into the far left corner to where there was a metal covering that covered a man sized metal vent. It looked tightly screwed on to the wall, but Ace removed by just taking the metal covering and lifting it upwards with a great heave, so that it slid up the wall with the sound of metal rattling over stone.

Luffy was the first to dive in, crawling along on his hands and knees, followed by his brother, and finally Zoro, who closed the covering behind him. Together, the three of them crawled on their hands and knees for a good five minutes at least, before the venting system finally opened up into a small hole which they jumped down into.

They stood around the manhole that laid on the floor beneath them, and Zoro lifted it effortlessly, even though it was made of an incrediably heavy metal. Opening the manhole, lots of little lights glittered back at them, revealing a metal ladder, whose rungs were thin and cold to the touch. Luffy grabbed either side of the ladder with both hands and feet, not bothering to use the rungs, and slid down the ladder, howling in pain as he did so.

His brother shook his head at his little brother's antics. "He does that everytime, and he never learns." He muttered, making Zoro chuckle in agreement as he watched the D. brother descend the ladder faster than a monkey.

Zoro lowered himself onto the ladder and closed the lid above him, carefully climbing down the ladder, thankful of the lights that had been installed either side of him to light the way. Upon reaching the bottom of the ladder, his boots touched down to the floor as he hopped off of it, turning around to view the huge cavern beneath the warehouse which he had stepped into.

His gaze alighted on the huge vessel that was proudly sat before him and a huge grin started to creep its way onto his face as he walked over to it and started to board it, patting the small plaque on it which read 'Thousand Sunny'.

The brig sloop was huge, and it was a ship which relied on the skills of its navigator, had it been in water. The ship's figurehead was in the shape of a roaring lion, with its mane in the shape of flower petals and crossbones undeneath it to give it a jolly-roger type look about it.

As Zoro stepped onto the deck, he chuckled under his breath. The ship had a lawn on its deck, complete with a swing and a slide, as well as an observation tower that stretched up to the huge ceiling of the cavern for a crow's nest.

He narrowed his eyes as he looked up at the crow's nest. Ace noticed this and slowly put his hands over his ears, waiting and backing off towards the direction of the kitchen.

"UUSSSSSSSOOOOOOOOPPPPP!" Zoro roared, nearly flattening Luffy as the kid fell over, his hands swiftly reaching up to cover his ears as he went and sat on the figurehead, crossing his legs underneath him comfortably. "GET DOWN HERE."

A clattering from the direction of the crow's nest was heard above them, and Zoro folded his hands over his chest as he waited with an annoyed expression on his face. Soon, a small hatch underneath the observation tower and instead of climbing down the ladder, the figure that was hastening to get out, managed to slip and fall the whole way to the deck, landing painfully on his back.

"Ow." Ussop muttered, sitting up and massaging his back. Suddenly he was roughly pulled to his feet by the scruff of his shirt. He turned to see Zoro glaring at him and he wilted a little, his attempt at a small wave dying a tragic death. "Wh-What have I done?" He asked warily, rubbing a finger down the length of his rather long nose.

Zoro resisted the urge to facepalm. '_He doesn't even know what he's done_.' He sighed mentally.

In the kitchen, Ace was sat at the table with Nami, who was in her pyjamas since she had been woken up by the sound of the manhole being opened up when the boys had returned. Thatch was also with them, having stayed up to make some waffles for the three guys.

Ace did facepalm.

"Oi, Ace, what did he do?" Thatch asked, keeping his voice low. Nami also turned to look at Ace, her gaze intensly questioning.

"You're about to find out." He said mysteriously.

Zoro let go of Ussop's t-shirt and punched Ussop hard on top of his head, making him slam to the grassy deck. "Are you sure you know the boundaries between our half of London...and Sanji's half of London? Because next time, you need to make sure you know where you are before starting your pick-pocketing!" Zoro growled as he watched Ussop get up again shakily, jabbing the kid in the chest and forcing him backwards until his back thudded against the main mast.

"D-Damnit." Ussop cursed, realising what he'd done and starting to apologize. "Shit. I-I'm sorry! I didn't realise I was even on Sanji's turf! I hadn't meant to, I swear. You know me Zoro, I'm a little stupid sometimes, I didn't do it on purpo-"

"Yeah, I know..." Zoro sighed, rubbing his temples irritatedly. "But you are on washing up duty for the next WEEK."

Ussop gulped, but he knew that he had got off lightly. Too lightly. "I'm guessing that Sanji...uhh...wants the stuff that I, uhh, took?" He asked tentatively. Zoro nodded, running his tongue along the tops of his lower set of teeth, testing their edge. "I'll just go and...uh...get th-AAARGH!" He yelled as he walked past Zoro, only to be pitched forwards onto the floor after having tripped over Zoro's leg.

The tanned teen made to stand up, but catching sight of the unsheathed katana whose point was on eye-level, he stilled in fear. "Never. Do it again." Zoro warned dangerously. Ussop nodded vigorously and scrambled up as the katana was sheathed once more, running full pelt for the gang's stolen stash that was in a room kept hidden by a secret bookshelf door in the library.

A whipping sound followed by a sharp crack alerted Zoro to the kitchen, to where Ace's accompanying howl informed him that Ace had been trying to steal the waffles. Again. Pushing open the kitchen door, Ace was nursing his hand as he scowled at Thatch, who was brandashing a tea towel at him menacingly.

"I'm warning you Ace. Do NOT touch them until they're done. You hear me?" He said sternly.

Ace muttered something and sat down, resting his cheek in one hand with a huff as he watched Thatch make the finishing touches to the waffles, making Nami snort quietly at his childish behaviour. He glanced at her and stuck his tongue out at her, making her bite down on a giggle that threatened to burst from within her. As they noticed their leader in the doorway, they grinned at him.

"Hey Zoro, just finished doing the waffles. Want some?" Thatch smirked, placing a plate each in front of Nami and Ace. Nami thanked him politely, whereas Ace started to wolf them down, making Thatch roll his eyes and lightly cuff his ear. "You're welcome." He muttered good-naturedly.

"What?" Ace mumbled around his food. "I'm hungry."

Zoro laughed. "Sure, I could do with some food right about now." He agreed, making to take a step inside.

"FOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOD." Came Luffy's cry, making everyone freeze.

"Uh-oh." Nami deadpanned, trying to finish her waffles quickly.

Thundering footsteps could be heard as Zoro hastily sat down and began to eat the waffles placed in front of him. Everyone looked up as echoing hooves clattered into the kitchen, revealing Chopper in his deer form, taking up the whole kitchen doorway.

"CHOPPER WATCH OUT!" Nami yelled as dust started to rise from behind the reindeer.

"EHHH?" Chopper screeched, his eyes getting wider as he turned around. There was a jumbled mass of fur and flesh as Luffy cannoned into him, the both of them falling to the floor heavily with Luffy pinning the poor reindeer to the floor.

"Huh? Oh hey Chopper! What were you doing in the doorway?" Luffy asked happily.

"STANDING, UNTIL YOU KNOCKED ME OVER." Chopper yelled, using his antlers to shove Luffy's body from off of him, pricking his skin slightly.

"Oh...Sorry." Luffy said as he stood up and dusted himself down, sitting beside Ace who was relaxing in his chair, having finished his waffles in time. "THATCH!" Luffy yelled suddenly. "FOOOOO-"

He was cut off as two waffles were shoved unceremoniously into his mouth by the cook. "Shut up and eat you idiot." Thatch growled as he put the rest of the waffles on the table for him, folding his arms and shaking his head in disbelief as Luffy munched on the waffles without complaint.

Ussop came in to join them, three wallets in his hands. "That's all I took this morning. All of it, I swear. They weren't bad pickings to be honest. Though if I'd known I was on the wrong side of the fence, I probably wouldn't have taken them. Sorry about that Zoro." He said, putting them beside his leader's arm as he sat down next to him. "Hope I haven't caused too much trouble..." He worried.

"Nah, s'not too bad." Zoro laughed, ruffling his friend's black curly hair fondly as he grinned. He suddenly noticed Luffy was splayed out on the floor, staring at the ceiling as though he hadn't a care in the world. "Oi...Luffy...What are you doing?"

"Sometimes...When I'm really bored...I like to lay down on the kitchen floor and pretend I'm a crumb." Luffy said, blinking a few times.

"You're insane." Nami stated bluntly, making the guys burst out into laughter around her as she stood up and yawned, stretching as she did so. "Well. It's nearly half one. In the morning. I'm going to go to bed, before one of you gets us killed, or worse, caught by MI5." She said superiorly, stalking off in the direction of the womens quarters to reveal her cute orange bunny slippers.

Zoro rolled his eyes. '_Like WE would get caught by the MI5...Besides...There's no way I'd let myself go near them...not with HIM around_.'

Thatch stared after her and shook his head in disbelief. "She _needs _to sort out her priorities." He said, rubbing his neck.

An orange slipper came flying through the door, hitting him in the forehead. Zoro, Luffy, Chopper and Ussop just about managed not to laugh. Ace sat there and sniggered, considering it justice.

Annoyed, Thatch took the slipper and hit Ace around the head with it.

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"GUUUUUUUUYYYYYYYS. WE OVERSLEPT." Came Nami's roar from outside the guys quarters.

Ace, who had been idly dozing at first, opened his fully at the shout. "Shit." He cursed. "Nami, what time is it?" He called from where he was sat in his hammock.

"It's half eleven!" She called back, her receeding footsteps heading towards the girls quarters.

"...We're doomed." Ace said shortly.

He sprang into motion, unravelling himself from his hammock and jumping out of it. He grabbed the edge of Luffy's hammock and up-ended it, allowing his brother to tumble out of it and hit the wooden floor with a hard thump. Just as Luffy's sleepy protests started up, Ace had already done the same to Thatch and Ussop. Thatch cursed colourfully and looked around for the culprit. On seeing Ace, he started to roll up his sleeves, glaring at him murderously whilst Ussop stood up groggily, clutching his aching head.

"WE HAVE HALF AN HOUR." Ace hollered at them, shaking Chopper and Zoro awake.

They all stared at him, dumbfounded.

"I CALL THE SHOWER."

"DIBS THE SECOND SHOWER.

"SHOTGUN THE THIRD."

"I D-"

"Nami's already in the fourth shower, Luffy. She will kill you if you try to get in there with her...so unless you have a death wish..."

"DAMN IT."

Fifteen minutes later saw all the guys washed and dressed, standing in the middle of the warehouse as Nami handed Zoro the wallets, who put them on the inside pocket of his leather jacket for safety. Zoro grabbed his three katanas and strapped them securely to his waist, running a hand through his hair.

"Ok. Are we ready? Remember, no attacking unless they start it. Yes I'm looking at you, Ace." Zoro reminded them, looking at the elder D brother pointedly, making Ace humph indignantly. "Move out." He ordered, allowing Nami to lead the way out of the warehouse, seeing as she would be the one they followed as she navigated the streets of London.

Nami led them at a full tilt sprint even though she was in orange sandal-like heels, with the boys following closely in her wake. Her short, shoulder length orange hair bounced as she ran, strands catching her face and making her glad that she didn't put any makeup on other than mascara.

A slight panting came from Ussop as he started to lag behind, turning yet another corner under Nami's directions. Chopper's doctor instincts kicked in, and he turned on his hind hooves, running back the other way and then charging at Ussop from behind. Ussop yelled in a panic and started to speed up as the antlers got even closer.

The antlers hooked the red suspension straps of Ussop's rolled-up yellow trousers. Ussop yelped as he was thrown backwards, landing roughly on Chopper's back. Insinctively, Ussop threw himself forwards and held onto Chopper's neck tightly with his arms, and his legs posiotioned themselves so that he looked to be in a jockey's pose.

After a few seconds of adjusting to the new speed, Ussop sat up slightly, a look of delight and pride on his face. "Aha! Thank you Chopper, you have aided the great Captain Ussop!" He cried, making Chopper and Luffy laugh as they ran alongside eachother.

Ussop fished inside his red satchel and drew out his slingshot, keeping it in safely in his hand as his sharp eyes scanned around the travelling group, searching for anyone that would dare to attack, making sure he was alert.

Meanwhile, Nami was also equipping herself. The three pieces of her beloved Climatact were in her hands, and she was having slight difficulty assembling it as she ran. Thatch watched as she attempted to set her weapon up and grinned mischeviously.

"Bit big for you, ne, Nami?" He said wickedly.

Nami glared at him, slotting the first two parts together. "Not really. Anything you guys can do, I can do better." She snorted, focusing her attention on fitting the last part on.

"Are you sure? Women are dangerous anyway..."

"SHUT UP THATCH." Nami yelled at him, looking at him demonically.

Thatch looked slightly horrified and he stumbled as Nami managed to fit the last section of the Climatact on, smiling in satisfaction. Ace laughed at Thatch's expression, only to run slap bang into a lamp post, stumbling away and holding his face.

Luffy was barely able to run he was laughing so hard, and he collapsed to his knees and was in danger of rolling on the floor as he laughed his arse off, tears streaming out of the corners of his eyes as his laughter echoed around him.

"SHUT UP LUFFY." Ace yelled, chasing after his little brother as Luffy sped off, still laughing hysterically as Ace chased him down.

"Why does everyone seem to be telling everyone to shut up today?" Ussop wondered out loud as he and Chopper drew alongside the remaining three who hadn't dashed after the D brothers.

"Shut up Ussop." Zoro, Thatch and Nami chimed simultaneously, making Ussop sweatdrop.

"I asked for that..." He muttered.

They arrived in St. James' square just as the clock chimed twelve o'clock. Just in time...to see Ace kick Luffy into the fountain.

Thatch facepalmed. "Why..." He whispered, rubbing the same hand down his face tiredly before helping Luffy drag himself out and collapse by Ace's feet, which kicked him gently in the side.

Across the square, Sanji raised an eyebrow in slight amusement. "It seems you've still got your pair of clowns, Marimo." He commented dryly.

Zoro's jaw clenched as he slowly walked over to meet them, Nami, Thatch, Ace, a dripping wet Luffy and Ussop who was still proudly sat astride Chopper falling in either side of him, three on his right, three on his left.

The Kali group fanned out behind Sanji as he lit a new cigarette. Brook, Trafalgar Law, Eustass Kid, Marco, Buggy, Vivi, Franky, Tashigi and Helmeppo.

No one else in the square dared to even move, the pedestrians staring at them intently, watching carefully as the group pulled out weapons in a show of power. Brook wielding a sword hidden within his cane, Trafalgar and Tashigi's obvious katanas, Eustass, Franky and Helmeppo each equipped with guns. Whereas Buggy, Vivi and Marco slid knives out from either their pockets or sleeves.

"We didn't come for a fight, eye-brow." Zoro said tiredly. "We've got your property, take it and bugger off." He said, taking out the three wallets and stepping forward, holding them out to Sanji indifferently.

Sanji eyed him suspiciously for a second. "How much is in them?" He asked, nodding to the wallets.

"A hundred and thirty. Counted them myself." Zoro answered.

The blonde haired teen nodded and took the wallets, putting them carefully away on the inside of his suit, patting it to show that it was now safe with him. "Thank you. Now I was thinking we need to negotiate some territory issues here." He said, this time sounding a little more sure of himself.

"I told you Sanji." Zoro growled, his voice raising to a shout. "IT'S NOT, NEGOTIABLE." He yelled, taking an involutary step forward.

A gun shot rang out across the square, making the inhabitants of London scream and run, ducking for cover. Helmeppo's smoking gun was trembling, giving away the fact that it had been accidental, but even though the bullet had harmlessly embedded itself in Luffy's stomach, the Mugiwara's all felt their tempers start to flare. Luffy plucked the bullet out of his stomach and threw it in the air, where Ace raised a hand to catch it, using his fire abilities to turn the bullet into nothing more than ash that blew away in the wind that was starting to whip up.

The panic truly started, when Kidd and Franky started to go a little trigger-happy, and Marco and Vivi lauched their knives expertly at their enemy, glaring at them hatefully as they did so.

Ussop immediately began firing pellets at the Kali group, catching them on their faces as much as he could to distract them whilst Chopper drove forward, his head down as he charged them, hoping to spear them on his antlers. When Ussop ran out of pellets, his put his slingshot back into his satchel, grabbing onto the reindeer beneath him as the reindeer literally jumped to the left as Buggy threw a barrage of knives at him.

The sniper withdrew a gun at the same time that Buggy did, both pointing them at one another. But before Buggy could pull the trigger, a bullet pierced his gun and split it down the length of the barrell before lodging itself into Buggy's gloved hand, making him yell and drop his gun, backing away as Chopper tried to charge him and Marco, who threw two knives at the reindeer. Ussop stuck his leg in front of Chopper's head to protect him, crying out as the knives drove into his leg.

He retaliated by shooting a bullet into Marco's hand, but he merely hissed as he burned the bullet out with his mythical logia abilities, quickly performing the whole transformation as he erupted into a blue flaming pheonix.

Ace suddenly jumped in front of his friends, yelling something at them as they turned around to fend off Trafalgar Law and Brook. The Mera-Mera fruit user grinned as the pheonix lifted it's wings and pecked its sharp beak forwards, intending to spear him. However, the beak was merely passed through a haze of flames as Ace grinned, grabbing the pheonix's neck.

Marco cawed racously in anger and took flight with Ace hanging on, kicking and punching with aflaming fists, riding the pheonix's back like a surfboard whilst Marco attempted to shirk off his unwanted rider.

Back on the ground, Luffy whooped with fierce laughter as he launched his arm forward, his gomu-gomu powers extending his arm so that his fist connected with Helmeppo's face powerfully, sending him flying back into the fountain and allowing Luffy to concentrate on Kidd, who could not accept that Luffy was impervious to bullets, insisting that he fire round after around into the rubber fruit user's chest.

Which evidently had no effect.

A female scream of annoyance came from Tashigi as her katana was blocked once again by Nami's Climatact, who's cheek was bleeding from a slight cut to her cheek where Vivi's hail of knives had managed to strike her earlier. Thatch was pressed up against her back, breathing heavily from having managed to disable nearly all of Franky's guns with expert timing, having not one scratch on him.

Franky glanced at the orange haired navigator through his triangular shades and grinned maliciously, taking a pistol from his pocket and firing it past Thatch and at Nami. Thatch's eyes widened and he jumped up and to the left, taking the bullet to his shoulder so that he screamed in pain as it hit his bone.

Nami gasped and lost her concentration, turning and catching Thatch as he fell, feeling a slight pressure of heat as Ace and Marco flew over the top of them, locked in a frenzied flame flying battle.

"ZORO. THATCH IS DOWN." She screamed, letting Thatch sink to the floor comfortably and jumping upwards quickly, doing catsplits in mid air so that she caught Vivi and Tashigi in the head simultaneously before picking Thatch up awkwardly as Chopper cantered over to her and Ussop graciously slipped to the ground, helping Nami haul Thatch onto Chopper's back and Nami clamber on behind him.

"Careful, two of you is the maximum weight I can carry. I'm not totally fully grown yet." Chopper warned. "Just hang on tightly, ok Nami?"

"I will." She nodded, wrapping her arms around both Thatch and Chopper's neck and hanging on grimly.

Sanji kicked out viciously at Zoro, who had drawn two of his katana's. Ducking under the kick, he raised them in front of him in a crossbones effect to block another kick that swiftly followed it previous kick. Zoro quickly turned one side of his katana, slicing Sanji's upper calf so that Sanji jumped back on his other leg, lost his balance so that he hit the ground and rolled, growling in pain.

Law ran over and picked Sanji up bridal style, aware that his blood dripped onto his sleeve. As he turned, he caught a flash of black that seemed to be running towards them. He paled slightly."FRANKY. RETREAT. NOW." He yelled, nodding his head in the direction of the rapidly approaching black blob. Franky glanced over, and he stiffened before snapping into action, grabbing the Kali group members and shoving them in the direction in which they had come.

"GO!" He yelled at them, following them hastily.

Ussop fired an explosive pellet at Marco as he and Ace swooped by, causing Ace to fall heavily to the floor, managing to roll and come up, dusting himself down.

"Time to get OUT of here guys!" Zoro yelled as they gathered to him. Ussop pulled out three pellets, firing them in quick succession at the floor so that they exploded upon impact and huge great clouds of dust erupted around them, making them cover their mouths as they fled back to the warehouse.

* * *

Thatch winced as Chopper tightened the bandage on his arm in the infirmary of the Thousand Sunny, gritting his teeth in a mixture of pain and irritation as everyone stood around him from where he was sat on his infirmary bed. "Haven't you guys got something better to do than watch me sit here and grimace in pain?" He growled irritably.

"Nope. This is the most fun I've had all day." Ace grinned, high fiving Luffy who sniggered.

"Shut up Ace." Nami muttered, punching his arm light heartedly. The black haired rogue pretended to flail in pain and reached out to Chopper, calling his name pitifully as he described how a horrible wench had struck him a mortal blow. Nami rolled her eyes and punched his head for real. "No really, now. Shut up." She said coldly, causing Ussop, Luffy and Chopper to sweatdrop.

Zoro stood up from where he'd been sat at the table. "You'll be fine in a few weeks Thatch, right Chopper?" He asked, running a hand through his hair and ignoring his sweat covered white t-shirt that clung to him like a swimming costume.

Chopper nodded, back in his usual cute racoon-like form. "As long as he doesn't move around too much."

"There you go Ussop." Zoro smirked. "Now you've got washing up duty for the next THREE weeks! Isn't that great?"

Ussop visibly drooped as he sweatdropped.

"Yippee." He muttered.

* * *

_**Ok, I hope this was ok for a first chapter...it's going to start to get quite interesting pretty soon...=)**_

_**PLEASE.  
LEAVE.  
A.  
REVIEW...Much love if you do. =')**_

_**Chapter two, coming up ASAP.**_

_**Kai XxxXxxX**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Black as Knight.  
**

* * *

**_Note: Throughout this fic, there will be love, humour, friendship, family, violence, spanking (in a parental tone), whipping and a mixture of other stuff, but nothing that could move this rating up to an M. =)_**

_**Ok, this chapter will hold a little more of Zoro's background...just a heads up. ^^**_

**_Thank you SO much to the two who reviewed! I was absolutely ecstatic! =D So to everyone else, PLEASE review! Please Please Please Please PLEASE! ^^_**

_**Enjoy!**_

* * *

**Chapter 2.**

Zoro cracked his eyes open as he felt someone shaking him awake. He saw Thatch's grinning face swim into view, and it cleared suddenly as Thatch clapped his cheek twice somewhat cheerfully.

"Rise and shine handsome." Thatch laughed as Zoro groaned and sat up, rubbing his tired eyes.

"Ugh, what time is it?" He asked, his voice croaky from having just woken up.

"Well, lets see. It's one o'clock on Sunday afternoon and Ace has already left us a den-den mushi." Thatch replied as he handed him a tankard of Sake, watching and stepping away as he drank it.

As Thatch had mentally predicted, it clicked in Zoro's brain seconds later and Sake spewed from his mouth in a fine spray.

"HE WHAT?!" Zoro spluttered, letting Thatch pat his back as he scrambled upright from the creaky old sofa that he was sat on. "WHERE'D HE GO?" He yelled, shrugging on his leather jacket and pulling his boots on as quickly as he could.

"The bakery." Thatch answered calmly with a hint of amusement.

The green haired teen paused. "...The bakery?" Zoro asked in confusion.

"Yeah, we're out of bread."

"We're out of money too."

"...The little git failed to mention that one."

Suddenly a high-pitched scream went up, getting closer as it entered the building. Thatch raised an amused eyebrow as Ussop came running into the warehouse towards them.

"Ussop...shut up, breathe, and tell me what's wrong." Zoro sighed, rubbing his temples.

Ussop bent double and put his hands on his knees, breathing heavily for a few seconds in silence. "Ace set the bakery on fire." Ussop said finally as he stood up, his hands resting firmly on his hips.

Silence followed.

"Fuck." Zoro said shortly. "MOVE OUT." He yelled suddenly, grabbing the den-den mushi that Ace had left as they ran to the concealed entrance of the warehouse. Picking up the den-den mushi, he started to shout into it. "ACE? ACE, YOU ANSWER ME RIGHT NOW." He shouted as he ran through the dark back streets of London, following the column of fire that he could see had erupted from the general direction of the bakery which was approximately twelve streets away.

"Uhh, I think you ought to know this...but...he accidently burnt the den-den mushi." Ussop called.

Cursing, Zoro slammed the den-den mushi into Ussop's hands and started to full out sprint towards the bakery, his powerful legs allowing him to surge forwards quickly. Zoro rounded corner after corner, turning down different streets as he neared his destination, Thatch and Ussop struggling to keep up with him.

As Zoro reached the flaming bakery, where an instant blast of hysterical female screams hit his eardrums which made him wince, he saw the figure of his friend who was currently silhouetted against the huge tower of flames.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCEEEEEE EEEE." He roared, running up to him and hitting him upside the head, making him yelp. "Damn it Ace, put it out! Do you want us to get caught?" He shouted angrily.

"IT WAS AN ACCIDENT, I SWEAR." Ace yelled back as he surged into the burning building, concentrating hard and allowing the fire to soak into his skin, until nothing but a smoking building remained, only just intact, but blackened and charred. "The baker said his oven fire wasn't working, so I lit my hand and went to put my burning hand under it and the idiot lit the gas at the same time, making my hair catch fire!" Ace protested to Zoro. "It made me jump in suprise and as I twisted round and fell, I grabbed the wall to catch my balance, but I hadn't put my hand out yet, and the wall went up like paper!"

Zoro face-palmed. "You idiot." He muttered. "Nami's going to kill you."

"Why?"

"Because we're going to have to pay for it." Zoro explained, an annoyed expression crossing his face.

"Aw hell." Ace grimaced, rubbing the back of his neck in embarressment and worry. "She's gonna murder me. Seriously, she's gonna turn into a psycotic bitch and shove one of Thatch's frying pans up my arse." He fretted.

Thatch snorted. "I won't let her. Those saucepans are valuable. Not to mention I'd never be able to cook with them again, not once they've taken a trip up _your _arse."

Ace smiled at him witheringly. "Thanks for thinking of me bro." He simpered. Thatch merely grinned in response as he turned his attention back to the burnt out building.

"So...Where's the baker?" Ussop asked nonchalently.

Everyone turned to look at Ace, who froze as his eyes widened in panic. Wordlessly he sprinted back into the bakery, tossing aside burnt debris and being careful as he made his way over to the corner of the room.

Thatch's face was a mixture of disbelief, whereas Zoro's expression was merely of someone who had long since given up. "We've got at least three minutes before the police get here, and if we're lucky, they won't have an agent with them." Zoro calculated. "Do we have any money on us at the moment?" He asked. Ussop showed them his empty pockets as he turned them inside out and Thatch shook his head.

"Ok. I'll be right back, I'm going in. We're wasting time. You two take this ten pound note and head over to the main market square, see what you can scrounge up. Ok? It's all we've got left." Zoro instructed. "Meet back at the base in about ten minutes."

They nodded and set off, leaving Zoro behind as he turned and strode into the bakery, the surrounding people parting like the red sea before him as they sensed danger approaching. He navigated his way through the debris until he was stood next to Ace and the weary baker, whose clothes had burnt holes in them and had ash streaks across his hands and face, which were red from having been exposed to the heat of the flames.

"Mugiwara leader..." The baker breathed, his eyes going wide in horror. "Roronoa Zoro!"

Zoro grimaced and gently shoved Ace aside, taking the baker either side of his collar and pulling him close. "Oi. Listen to me." He commanded, gaining the immediate attention of the fear stricken baker. "This whole thing was an accident, but we're willing to come back tomorrow and pay for at least half of the damage. However, this is probably going to be on the news. So, in exchange for being let go unharmed, you say not a word about us. Ok? The only thing anyone else knows, is that you dropped the match when putting the gas on. Do I make myself clear, old man?" Zoro growled threateningly.

The baker nodded. "I-I-I won't say a word. J-Just take some bread from the back and c-come at two o'clock tomorrow afternoon for the money...I-If that's reasonable. Please, just d-don't hurt me." He begged pitifully, watching as Ace disappeared for a second, returning with two loaves of freshly baked bread with a grin.

"That sounds very reasonable indeed, and it's a deal I accept. Now remember, you never even saw us." He reminded the baker, who nodded vigorously, gasping in fear as he was released.

As Zoro and Ace walked out of the bakery, they were confronted by the public en masse, staring at them suspiciously. The corners of Zoro's lips quirked up in a smile as he held his palms up to them. "He's ok." He announced, hearing a collective sigh of relief. "But we have to stick together as a community by helping him to rebuild the bakery. Find as much wood as we can so that we can start. The sooner, the better." He said, motivating the people who replied with a chorus of cheers as they set off to find some wood.

Meanwhile, Zoro and Ace edged through them and headed back to the warehouse, checking to make sure that they were not followed before slipping in through the concealed door and down the hatch, arriving safely at the Thousand Sunny to find Nami, Luffy and Chopper waiting for them.

"Hey! Where did you guys disappear off to?" Luffy called as the boarded the ship. "You didn't have an adventure without me did you?" He pouted.

"Well, I think Ace can explain this one. Make sure you listen well Nami." Zoro hinted, making Ace gulp audiably as Nami turned to him, her gaze suddenly suspicious as Zoro smirked and walked away, heading to the crow's nest as he heard Thatch and Ussop board the ship and head to the kitchen to the sound of Ace's cautious 'I can explain...'.

Just as Zoro went to close the hatch of the crow's nest, Nami's loud screech followed by Ace's frantic protests and yells of pain signalled that Nami had proceeded to start trying to kill one of the strongest guys in London, with suprisingly scary results.

"NAMI I SWEAR I HADN'T MEANT T-"

_"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MUCH THIS WILL COST US, YOU-"_

"O-OI! NAMI! CALM DOWN!"

"SHUT UP USSOP!_ AAACCEEE_!"

"ACE! RUN!"

"GOD DAMNIT NAMI, PUT THE SAUCEPANS DOWN! I NEED TO COOK WITH THOSE!"

"I TOLD YOU SHE'D TRY AND SHOVE THEM UP MY ARSE."

"_OH DID YOU NOW? LETS SEE IF THEY'LL GO ALL THE WAY UP AND OUT THROUGH YOUR _**MOUTH**_._"

"_HOLY CRAP SHE'S A MAD WOMAN."_

"PUT THEM DOWN NAMI-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAGH! LET ME GO YOU VIOLENT WITCH! _AAAAAAAAAAAAA_-"

The closed hatch blotted the sounds out slightly, but at least they weren't as loud as before, meaning that he could to his training in peace and go to sleep without any distractions.

Zoro walked over to the edge of the circular crow's nest and carefully laid his three swords down on the long window seat that ran the circumference of the room. Glancing out of the window, he checked to see whether Nami was still beating up Ace, to see Ussop, Luffy and Thatch holding back a raging Nami as Chopper attempted to bandage Ace's bruising face and torso.

"...Witch." Zoro muttered, shaking his head as he made his way over to a pile of weights and a pole. Taking the pole, he slid four large weights on either side of the pole, being careful and making sure that they wouldn't slide off once he had started his training.

Removing his leather jacket and white shirt, he discarded them alongside his swords and rolled his shoulders. His bare torso was devoid of any bruising, even though he was probably known for getting into the most fights. However, he had trained himself thoroughly and knew how to handle nearly every situation.

Nearly.

He slowly started to swing the weights up with one hand, bringing it up from his waist to high above his head, keeping a steady rhythm as he did so.

Ten minutes later saw him on three hundred, having barely broken a sweat. He found his mind wandering a little, turning his mind to things that he wanted to keep behind locked doors...things he had wanted to forget.

Hours later and sweat was steadily dripping down his body, coating it in a fine sheen of perspiration. Then he started to see clips of things. Broken. Fragmented. Like the sliver slivers of a cracked mirror. Seen between the cracks of reality when he lifted the weights, feeling the weight as though it was mentally crushing him. '_One thousand eight hundred and ninety eight...One thousand eight hundred and ninety nine...One thousand nine hundred...' _He chanted mentally.

Zoro closed his eyes, but it only made the images clearer as even more time passed.

_"Again."_

_"We've been at this for hours. If I could just rest-"_

_"IF YOU ARE ATTACKED BY AN ENEMY, BE ASSURED THAT THEY WILL NOT, REST. Now...AGAIN."_

Zoro grit his teeth and started to count out loud, albeit under his breath. "Two thousand and twenty five...two thousand and twenty six..."

_"BECOMING A ROGUE IS ALL I WANT TO DO."_

_"I WILL NOT LET **MY **SON BECOME A RUTHLESS, UNRULY, BLOODTHIRSTY, KILLING, STREET RAT."_

_"IT'S NOT YOUR CHOICE. YOU CAN'T DECIDE FOR ME."_

_"OH YES I CAN, I'M YOUR FATHER. I WON'T ALLOW IT."_

Zoro's eyes flashed open...

...And the weights fell.

Zoro stared at the floor numbly, his mind blank and his fingers twitching from where they had lost grip on the weights that were slowly rolling to the edge of the room before coming to a stop at the wall with a thump as metal met wood.

He slid slowly to the floor, landing on his knees before allowing himself to fall backwards until his bare torso hit the stone cold floor, soothing his back as he felt the pressure of his head being taken off from his neck as he relaxed slightly, dispelling every memory that had been brought to surface as he looked to the ceiling which his knees also pointed up towards.

The sound of the hatch opening two minutes later didn't even stir him as he continued to stare at the wooden boards above him. Footsteps were heard coming closer and stopping beside him, replaced by the sound of someone kneeling down beside him. Ussop's face came into view, worriedly glancing over him as concentration ran over his face.

"Oi...Zoro. You ok? Hurt anywhere? What the hell did you do? Did you lose your grip on the weights or something? Overwork yourself? You've been up here for at least three to four hours so-"

"Shurrrrrup..." Zoro whispered.

Ussop stared at him stupidly, blinking in confusion. "What?"

"I ssssaid shut up..." Zoro slurred as he blinked dazedly. "You talk too muchhh..."

The sniper nodded. "Yeah, I know." He said, grabbing Zoro's upper body and lifting him so that he was sat upright. "Chopper's on his way up." He continued, trying to ignore Zoro's groaning. "I hope he's got painkillers. Especially for if you get annoyed with me in the next five seconds. In which case I hope they're extra strong."

Zoro's reply was halfway between a grunt and a moan, so Ussop was relieved when a pair of antlers carrying a medical bag appeared over the rim of the Crows Nest's hatch, revealing Chopper as the little reindeer hurried over to them and started to check the gang leader's condition.

"Looks like he just dropped the weights. His hands are unresponsive which signal numbing...and his lack of normal response in general show that his brain has been overloaded. Stress maybe?" Chopper questioned in concern, taking a dry flannel from his kit and wiping Zoro's brow with it.

"Well, let Ussop and I get him to the men's quarters. If we get him under the shower, he can relax and try to think clearly. Besides, it's the evening anyway. He can sleep straight after." Came Thatch's voice of reason from where he was leant against the window from having followed Chopper up.

Ussop nodded. "Sounds about right, but you can deal with him in the shower. No offence to him or anything, but I really don't want him trying to kill me just because I tried to get him into the shower." He said.

The cook laughed. "Done." He agreed. "Just help me get him down the ladder. Ok? Then you can clear up the weights instead."

The three of them proceeded to pick up the limp, green haired teen. Carrying him over to the ladder and strapping him tightly to Thatch's back with one of the towels that Zoro would have used to rub the sweat off after having finished his normal workout, and a jacket that Ussop had taken from his satchel.

Upon arriving on the deck's grassy lawn, Thatch untied Zoro from his back and nodded to Ussop and Chopper, who poked their heads back over the edge and drew the hatch back over so that it closed with a heavy thunk. He proceeded to avoid the kitchen, where he could hear Nami yelling at Luffy and Ace to at least eat the food with the cutlery provided and not with their fingers.

Thatch scowled, his cook side agreeing with Nami wholeheartedly.

Having dragged his usually relaxed boss -who was currently a little TOO relaxed since Thatch was carrying his entire bodyweight for him- down into the guys quarters, he laid him gently on top of the quilts that covered the beds.

Leaving him there for a second, he freely moved over to the huge bathroom that the six boys all shared and rummaged through the cupboard on the wall. Taking two towels out, he put them on the metal rail that jutted out from the wall away from the glass doors that separted a quarter of the bathroom from the rest of it. Sighing in resignation he turned the shower on and walked back through into the large bedroom, taking out and setting aside a spare set of clean pyjamas for the both of them.

Turning to Zoro, whose gaze was still fixated on the ceiling, he rolled his eyes and walked over to him calmly. Laying his boss out on the bed, he started to strip him of his clothes until he was in his birthday suit. From there he slung Zoro's arm over his shoulder and hauled him through the bathroom and into the steaming shower.

As the water pelted them both, Thatch fully clothed and Zoro fully naked and sat on the shower floor, Thatch raised an eyebrow and squeezed some shampoo into his hand before massaging it into Zoro's scalp. Zoro's head lolled back and forth loosely with the movement, totally relaxed physically, but his mind as tense as a frozen muscle.

It was only after Thatch had washed out the shampoo and had started to apply the conditioner that Zoro started to regain the ability to talk and move once more, exiting his previously frozen state.

"Thatch..." He said quietly, barely audiable over the sound of the shower's continuous rythm of water. Receiving no answer, he turned his head, suprising his friend as he said the name once more.

"Yeah! Yeah, I'm here." Thatch replied, frowning as he realised that he hadn't quite made sense. Of course he was here.

However, Zoro relaxed and leant his back into Thatch's legs. "Good..." He said. "I was wondering..."

"Hmm?" Thatch hummed, beginning to rinse Zoro's green hair so that the conditioner bubbles ran down Zoro's well-muscled neck.

"Did I ever tell you how I ended up on the streets?" He asked almost absentmindedly.

Thatch raised his eyebrows in surprise. He hadn't expected this. "Uhhh...No. I don't think ever really mattered. We were too busy setting up the shed when we first met. I guess background never really crossed my mind." He admitted, picking up the soap and starting to get to work on cleaning his friend's back.

"I ran away." Zoro murmured, sounding as though he was remembering it. Dragged back through time.

"Oh..." Thatch frowned slightly, massaging the soap into Zoro's arms and trying to keep his face neutral as he felt Zoro's huge biceps that seemed to almost leap out from his arms.

"My father...wanted me to be one thing...and I wanted another." Zoro continued in a dream-like voice. "He wanted me to be an agent like him so he could keep an eye on me, but I wanted to be a rogue. Even one of Gol. D Roger's rogues...even though I was way too young at the time and I knew he wouldn't allow me to join."

Thatch remained silent, feeling that it would be wrong if he said anything...knowing that it would be interrupting, and that he might never get the chance to hear this information again.

"But I didn't want to become an agent...he used to train me in swordsmanship but he was over the top, expecting everything of me...expecting complete obedience. I suppose that's what's happens when you're an agent, but that's what he always was. An agent. Not a father...He was the head of MI5...how the hell was he supposed to have time for me? Mum had already died when I was young. My father told me what had happened to her, because he didn't believe in lying to me at that age. She was targeted by a terrorist gang because of him being an agent that was hunting them down, but they got to her before he could." Zoro said emotionlessly, his eyes glazed over with his past. Thatch still remained silent, his eyes wide in shock as he slowly processed the fact that his boss's father was an agent, the people that they ran from. The head of them, no less, who was a man of legend when it came to the agents.

"Then...When I was thir...thirteen...I didn't turn up for training...Locked myself in my room. I escaped out of the window whilst he forced his way in, so I ran back into the house and into the basement, took my two katanas and another, a white one...Wado, the family's prized sword...just to spite him. I ran onto the streets looking for shelter where he wouldn't find me...and I never looked back."

Thatch swallowed. It was more than enough to make him think twice about staying with the Mugiwara's, but he'd known Zoro for too long to let this even try to faze him.

"Thatch?" Zoro asked directly, turning his head to try and look up at his second in command.

"Yeah?" Thatch questioned, taking the shower off of its hook and hosing down Zoro's body, getting rid of all the soapy suds.

"Does this affect who I am?"

Thatch stopped, allowing the shower to just spit the water over Zoro's back as he held it loosely in his hand, trying to think of what to say that could put his friend's mind at rest. "Well..." He started, moving the shower head again and continuing his previous job. "It does, but it doesn't." He replied evasively. As soon as he'd said it he realised that it didn't quite make sense, so he expanded on it.

"I think it does, in the sense it has made you who you are up until today. If you hadn't run away, you wouldn't be here now. But at the same time, it doesn't affect who you are, if you don't let it. The future is the part you control, but the past is the past, a fixed point in time. You can't change the past, but you can make the future...and you determine your own future by what you do and say. That, is who you are." Thatch explained, turning the shower off.

There was a silence, in which Zoro's eyes examined the tiled floor beneath him, scanning each part unseeingly as he figured it all out in his head before nodding in finality. Wordlessly, he held his hand up.

With a smirk, Thatch took it, helping him upright and grabbing a towel from the rail, handing it to him. Zoro wrapped the towel around his waist and walked through to the guys quarters with Thatch in his wake, who was soaked through to the skin. They both started to change seperately into their pyjamas, both glad to have some normal, dry clothes on.

"Thanks." Zoro said as he sat down on his bed, resting his head against the head board at the back of the bed.

Thatch turned to look at him as he paused in the doorway and shrugged. "S'what I'm here for bro." He smiled. "Want any food? Alcohol?"

Zoro shook his head with a grin, putting his hands up behind his head as he relaxed into the soft quilt beneath him. "Nah, maybe in the morning."

"Suit yourself Marimo." Thatch laughed, ducking out of the doorway and closing the door, hearing the soft thwack as the pillow meant for him hit the now closed door. Thatch snorted quietly and headed up to the kitchen.

The rest of them couldn't cook if their lives depended on it.

That and he still needed to kick the arses of those damned D. brothers.

* * *

Nami muttered to herself as she brushed her hair in the kitchen, fully dressed and awake at just past one o'clock in the afternoon the next day. Her limbs ached underneath her slightly tattered clothes. Wordlessly, Thatch handed her a glass of cold water, to which she gratefully accepted with her free hand, sipping the cool contents contentedly.

"Rough night?" Thatch asked quietly as she handed him the empty glass once having finished it, placing it in the sink behind him.

Nami grunted and gracefully flopped down into a chair, hiding her head in her arms as she closed her eyes. "I still feel drained." She groaned.

The corners of his lips quirked in amusement. "Well I'd be surprised if you weren't. You were out pickpocketing the streets of London from nine at night until five o'clock in the morning."

"It only took so long because everyone's wallets were so pitifully thin. I came across one good catch, _one_." Nami sighed resignedly. "Do you even know how disappointing that is? For me at least?"

He chuckled at that. "No, but I can imagine. But on the brightside, you did manage a pretty good haul. There's about one hundred and twenty in those put together, right?"

Nami nodded. "About that. Shame that it has to go to the marimo and not me." She pouted, laying her chin back on her arms as she stared at the money pile in front of her that looked so tempting, but was just tantalizingly out of reach. "I could do with the money to buy a few things..."

Rolling his eyes, Thatch meandered his way over to the padlocked cupboard labelled 'dangerous kitchen appliances, do not touch' and twisted the dial numerous times until it clicked. Upon opening it, he took apart a dangerous looking blender and removed the blades at the bottom to reveal a small round hole. Stashed inside were at least four twenty pound notes. Grabbing two, he replaced the blades and re-assembled the blender before locking the cupboard back up.

Turning back to Nami, he took her hand and pressed the fourty pounds into her hand, to which her eyes widened in surprise. "Go and buy yourself a new outfit or something. Looks like you need some new clothes anyway judging by what you're wearing. Besides, that's what girls do, isn't i-"

He was cut off with a slight 'oof' as Nami jumped out of her seat, spun around and grabbed him in a huge bone crushing hug around his chest, seeing as she was quite a bit smaller than him.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! _Thank you_!" Nami cried joyfully, bouncing on her tip-toes as she hugged him.

Thatch, after having gotten over his original shock, laughed and squeezed her back before letting her go. "Yeah well, I'm not doing it again. It's a one off 'well done' for your efforts last night. Ok?"

Nami nodded enthusiastically. "Hai, Nii-san.*"

He grinned and ruffled her hair a little, but not enough to seriously muss it up. The Mugiwara's weren't really family, not by blood (if you don't count the D brothers), but they had been together long enough to consider themselves family. Since Nami was the youngest and had never really known a family, they'd done their best to try and make it up to her, which had ended up with them all being very protective of each other and for Nami to start calling the older guys Nii-san. They were all rather fond of their orange haired little sister.

They both turned as a sleepy Ussop walked in, still in his pyjamas, scratching the back of his head through his black bushy afro. "Morning Ussop!" Nami smiled happily.

Ussop blinked a few times blearily and smiled. "Sup Nami." He greeted, grabbing a glass of milk and sitting down at the table with it.

Ace walked in behind the afro kid not seconds later, dressed in his usual attire of boots, shorts and bare torso, although this time he was minus his hat. "Hey guys!" He grinned, holding up his hand to Nami who grinned and high-fived it in response. "How are we then this m-"

"I NEED BOOZE." Zoro's interupting roar sounded out from the doorway. After raising an eyebrow, Thatch uncorcked a bottle of small sake and threw it at his leader, who neatly caught it and drank at least half of it. "Ahh, s'better." He muttered, wiping his mouth with his arm.

Shaking her head at him, Nami hugged him with a smile, surprising him and making him old his arms out wide away from her so that his sake bottle was nowhere near her. He stared at Thatch over her head, who shot him a pointed stare.

Catching the hint, Zoro quickly placed the sake bottle on the table and hugged her back. "Ehh? Feeling happy then today, eh Nami?" He asked.

"Yeah! I got a pretty good haul last night considering that the wallets were all pretty thin." Nami nodded. "About one hundred and twenty."

"The wallets would fetch a good price too y'know." Ace called out, pointing to the empty leather wallets that were piled in the middle of the table. "Want me 'nd Luffy to go out later and see what we can get for them?"

"Sounds like a good idea, Ace." Zoro agreed. "But might want to watch out for Luffy though." Ace grinned in response, knowing that his brother could sometimes go a little...off track when it came to those sorts of things.

Nami huffed at him and put her hands on her hips. "Seriously, we should use the money I collected to get a leash for Ace so that he doesn't go and burn down any more buildings."

An indignant exclamation from Ace on the other side of the table made Zoro smirk as he turned to the little sister of the group. "Well I'll make sure to threaten him later. That way we won't need to waste money. Besides, I need that money to shut that damned baker up."

Reluctantly, Nami reached into the back pockets of her jeans and handed over the one hundred and twenty pounds that she had collected, placing them into Zoro's waiting hand with soft thump, as though sad to let the money go. Zoro smirked at her expression and grabbed his katanas from the door, strapping them securely to his waist.

"Well, I better go now then. I'll see you all later." Zoro said, glancing at the clock on the Sunny's cooker as the others nodded their goodbyes, watching as he made his way off of the ship and up the metal stairs, coming out into the warehouse and out onto the streets of London.

Making his way down the street, he shut off everything around him. Just walking contentedly as he strolled, passing everyone who quietly stared at him, staying away from him just that tiny bit. Not by a huge distance, but in the safety that they wouldn't just run into him or knock his shoulder.

It wasn't like you could mistake who he was. Tall, bright green hair and three katanas. He didn't mind being known by everyone in London, whether it be on his side or not, but sometimes it did get rather annoying when he couldn't just become one with the crowd so as to go unnoticed.

Upon reaching the bakers, he found the man in the back of the store, checking up on his stores that had been there just before Ace had accidently set the whole place alight.

"Oi, here's your money." Zoro stated, pressing the hundred and twenty pounds into the terrified bakers hand. "Just remember, not a word about us. It was an accident and you dropped the match or something."

"Y-Yes sir." The baker gulped.

Zoro coughed in the awkward silence that followed. "So...uh...did you get hurt at all?" He questioned, knowing that technically, he should be looking out for his half of London, unlike that idiot curly-brow.

The baker shook his head in response. "N-No, not really. Just a few burns, but that's to be e-expected. B-B-But the bakery will be up and running again as usual within the week I'm sure, thanks to this money. Th-Thanks again, Roronoa Zoro." He thanked him.

The gang leader nodded and hummed as he turned away, heading out of the shop having finished up with his errand. There was nothing else to do now. He felt like grabbing a drink, but there was plenty back on the Thousand Sunny. Immediately his made up his mind and started to head back, not hurrying in the slightest.

Zoro smirked to himself as he started to leisurely stroll back to the warehouse. It seemed as though everything had turned out ok, meaning that he had won Thatch's bet. Which was even better, naturally.

He noticed the Halloween decorations being put up all over the houses and streets, getting ready for Halloween, which was nearly three days away. He smiled. His favourite time of year. So Christmas was all well and good, but scaring people and not getting in trouble for it was even better.

Besides. Nami, Thatch and Chopper always brought back the free candy.

As he walked, he started to feel a slight tingling sensation that made the hairs on the back of his neck rise, making him shiver involuntarily.

He frowned. It felt as though someone was watching him. He stopped in the middle of the street, people walking past him but not touching him. He was never one to feel scared or intimidated, but something about this seemed almost...familiar.

Sensing that the source was behind him a way, he slowly turned his torso so as to look back at the end of the street. Sure enough, a man was stood on the corner of the street, leaning up against the side of the building and watching him intensely. He took in the black trousers, the white shirt, the black ankle length cape and the black hat that covered his face, the plume of which blew gently in the wind.

Zoro stared. His breath caught in his throat and his eyes widened in horror as the man stood up fully and started to walk towards him. "Fuck." He breathed, turning around and breaking into a flat out sprint, his muscles rippling as he pushed himself forwards. Anyone caught in his path was shoved aside none too gently as he weaved his way through them.

Taking reckless twists and turns down various streets, the Marimo checked over his shoulder to see the man running after him, his cape flying out wildly behind him. Zoro started to feel fear building up inside him and pushed every once of strength into running even faster, as fast as his legs would carry him.

After five solid minutes of sprinting, his breath started to run short, but his pursuer was starting to catch up. Cursing, Zoro turned into some of the old backstreets of London. Upon unsheathing one of his three Katanas that were strapped to his side, people around him started to scream and scramble out of his way. Zoro's face scrunched up in distaste, knowing that it just attracted the attention that was _REALLY_unwanted at that precise moment.

He swiped at one of the vegetable stalls that he passed, unleasing a chaotic and undignified scramble as cascades of apple and lemons crates tumbled to the stone cobbles, the wooden crates smashing and splintering upon impact.

Zoro took lefts and rights at random, swerving behind things in an attempt to lose his pursuer. He finally stopped when he came to a deserted street, hiding behind a stone pillar and pressing his back against it as he regained his breath, straining to be quiet as he listened for any echoing footsteps that signaled the arrival of his follower.

There were none. He silently resheathed his Katana and took a few shaky steps forwards. Looking around him, he realised that he gotten himself lost. Again.

Numbly, he stumbled down the streets until he happened to come to one he recognised, which luckily for him was close to the warehouse. Dragging himself down them until he came to the warehouse, he slipped in through the door and locked it behind him before heading over to the vent, making his way down to the Thousand Sunny in less than a minute after having nearly fallen down the metal ladder, his limbs feeling like water.

As his boots touched the ground, a sense of helplessness washed over him and his legs collapsed beneath him, turning his body so that his back hit the wall with a thump, a cloud of dust rising from around him.

His body shook slightly, the close encounter having been enough for him as he stared at the ground between his knees, not really seeing anything in his state of shock and fear. He closed his eyes as he heard an almost silk like voice echo in his mind, the memory of it being one that he had striven to try and forget. It haunted him, and the memory filled him with anger.

The anger swelled like pressurised magma from within the earth's crust, boiling and raging inside him. His face contorted into one of fury as he stood up slowly, unable to rid himself of the voice within his mind. The rage finally overcame him as he snapped, the rage becoming a huge bellowing roar as all three Katanas were drawn.

On board the Thousand Sunny, Thatch raced on deck and ran to the railing gripping the wood tightly as his jaw clenched. The Mugiwara's filed up behind him more hesitantly, their eyes wide in astonishment as the scene unravelled before him.

"What's...g-going on?" Nami asked.

"Why's Zoro freaking out?" Luffy questioned in confusion.

"Sh-Should I go and t-tend to him?" Chopper wondered out loud.

Thatch shook his head. "No Chopper, leave him be for the moment. Likely as not he's gonna destroy a lot of shit before coming back to us, and it's not like he's gonna hurt himself. Well. Unless he's unlucky enough to have one of the shelves fall on him." He said. Turning to his friends, he nodded his head back towards the ship. "You guys better get inside just incase he takes it over here. Otherwise you'll get caught up in it." He added wisely.

Luffy frowned. "But we n-" He started to protest.

His brother's hand clapped down on his shoulder and started to gently pull him away. "Oi, Lu. Give him some time. Obviously there's something up, or he just needs to let loose, get it out of his system." He said reasonably, winking at Thatch's look of relief as he helped to get them all back inside.

Thatch turned back to the railing and sighed, watching as metal sliced into the cavern walls and left incrediably large scores in them, cutting up pieces of metal shelf and spearing metal containers, giving them dangerously sharp edges from where they had been sawn into halves or more.

The katanas seemed to have a life of their own, dancing, curving and arcing through the air in a frenzy as they cut through anything they came into contact with. It took skill to be able to do so with such precision and accuracy, and Zoro had had more than enough practise.

The skill however, had been drummed into him ever since he had been little.

_Beads of sweat glistened as they slowly threaded their way down the young boy's lightly tanned face. He was breathing heavily, with two wooden swords in each hand, stabbing away mercilessly at his opponant, giving them no time to attack as his tireless onslaught wore the other down._

_"Stop."_

_The two boys stopped. The boy with the two swords grinned as the man who had stopped them stared at them._

_"Hey dad, what do you think? I'm getting better now aren't I-"~_

_"It's a pitiful effort. Your stance was wrong and you were only tiring yourself out because you have a weak stamina. Do you honestly expect to beat your opponants with such weakness?" The man stated coldly, nearly emitting a short humourless laugh at the end._

_The boy's hopes were dashed, shown by the slow fall of his smile and the droop of his shoulders."B...But...Maybe if I were to try again-"_

_"No, enough. You are to train. And train hard. With a weak body and a weak mind, you are nothing to me. I have nothing to work on to be able to make you into an agent. Now get out." The man snapped._

* * *

_Zoro glared at his father, not bothering to keep the hatred out of his eyes. "Look, I don't have to do what you say."_

_"Yes you damn well do, and you will do what I say, WHEN I tell you to do it." His father stared back at him, his eyes piercing as he met his son's gaze._

_"I DO WHAT I WANT." Zoro yelled, his small-ish hands balling into fists._

_"DO NOT. ARGUE. WITH ME." His father roared in return, brandishing a warning finger in his son's direction, making him flinch slightly._

_"THERE YOU GO AGAIN, TELLING ME WHAT TO DO. LEAVE ME ALONE. I HATE YOU." The boy shouted, hot angry tears filling his eyes as he ran out of the room and bolted down the hallway in a desperate attempt to get out of his father's presence, which only resulted in his father following him at a quick pace._

_"RORONOA. GET BACK HERE IMMEDIATELY."_

_"I SAID LEAVE ME ALONE. I WISH YOU WERE DEAD."_

* * *

_The green haired boy stared at the stone slab in front of him. The cold rain pelted him from all sides, soaking him completely to the skin, but he barely noticed. Tears that welled in his eyes and slid along the lengths of his eye lashes merely looked like raindrops, mixing in with them before falling to join the rest that had fallen before them._

_Green ivy wound its way up the stone slab, making it hard to make out the few words that had once been carefully engraved upon the dulled grey headstone. The green ivy was slowly, gently pulled away by small hands which then proceeded to stroke the headstone lovingly, wistfully, forlornly._

_"I wish you were here." Zoro whispered. "Mum, I really wish you were here. He keeps telling me that I need to become a strong agent, but I feel he's just telling me that because it's what __**he **wants. I miss you...and I love you so much, even if I barely remember you. But I p-promise. I'll m-make you proud a-and do my o...my own...go my own way. I-I-I p-promise."_

_He stopped, taking a shuddering breath that had nothing to do with the cold wind that was now biting at him, nipping away at his bare skin and tearing at his clothes that whipped as the wind built in strength and volume, howling loudly like a dog._

_"I PROMISE."_

* * *

His body heaving, Zoro felt a haze lift from him as his vision seemed to clear, which allowed him to stare around him and survey the damage that had been done to the walls, shelves and other objects that had been around him. Metal beams had been severed, broken glass was on the floor, along with the contents which the glass should have contained and the walls themselves had light scratches running along the wall, but never reaching halfway up and the scratches never going too deep, instead looking like mere pencil drawings.

Zoro panted with exertion, slowly sheathing his katanas and numbly walking over to the ship, to where Thatch was calmly sitting on the pure white railing of the Thousand Sunny, bearing a large tankard of sake ready for his friend, his own already half drunk from his tankard which was placed beside him.

Wordlessly taking it from his old friend, he turned and slid his back down the railing until his butt met the wooden panels of the Sunny's deck. They sat in silence for a while, gulping down their drinks, merely appreciating each others company.

"Do they want to know?" Zoro asked quietly after about ten minutes of silence.

Thatch eyed him silently for a few moments. "Are you ready to tell?" He responded just as quietly.

Zoro remained silent, considering the question. "Not yet."

* * *

_**Aaaaaaaand that is chapter two people. ^^ I hope it was ok...I'm still getting a feel for writing this, xD It's gonna have a lot of themes, and quite a few of them are a little dark in some respects, but what I am kind of aiming to do, is see if I can convey emotion.**_

**Basically, I'm trying to make you cry.**

**Or laugh.**

**Depending on what I'm writing.**

_**Oh, something else, for any of you Tumblr fans out there, you can follow me if you're interested, cause I follow back. ^^ My Tumblr name is; MadnessIsJustTheBeginning**_

**Anyway, please review! ^^D**

**Kai XxxXxxX**


	3. Chapter 3

**Black as Knight.**

_**To anyone that doesn't know;  
The Mall is the huge long road that leads down from Buckingham Palace.  
'Oyabin' means Boss...or the equivalent of I suppose... ^^)  
MI5 is a bit like the Secret Service, or the CIA/FBI...but, the British version.**_

_**To those asking about Zoro's mum, I /DID/ mention that she's dead, but you'll hear more about her in later chapters. =)**_

_**PEOPLE HAVE BEEN REVIEWING! THANK YOU SO MUCH! =D I LOVE YOU! PLEASE, KEEP, REVIEWING! ^^D**_

_**WARNING; (Parental) Spanking in this here chapter.**_

_**Read and review pweeeety pwease. ^_^**_

* * *

**Chapter 3.**

"FOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD. THATCH YOU LEDGEND!" Luffy yelled joyfully as Thatch walked in. Thatch glared at him disapprovingly.

"Just because I managed to get my hands on a huge bucket of chicken drumsticks from the butchers, doesn't mean I automatically become the most important person in the world. Even though I am." He scolded, holding the black plastic bucket close to him.

Zoro tapped Thatch's shoulder as he walked into the kitchen behind him. As Thatch looked one way, Zoro nipped the other side and stole one of the drumsticks from the bucket. Thatch looked at him at first in suprise, which quickly morphed into annoyance, clipping him around the ear half-heartedly as Zoro failed to duck, walking off triuphantly with his prize to the amusement of everyone else.

"Thaaaattchh..." Luffy whined, pouting at his friend rather cutely, making his eyes as wide as they would go.

The bucket was shoved onto the table. "Fine! Have at it you vultures." He gave in, taking one himself as the rest of the table dove on it, filling their plates eagerly, or mouths in two cases.

Zoro leant up against the wall as he nibbled on the remaining meat that was still clinging to the bone of his own drumstick, chuckling with laughter as he watched the antics of his crazy friends. His family, even.

"Yo Zoro." Ace called, having wolfed down his fill of food already, leaving the others to fight Luffy for their fair share. "I heard something rather interesting this morning on the radio." He said myteriously.

The Mugiwara leader raised an interested eyebrow, leaning to the left as the knife that Chopper had thrown at Luffy was dodged, embedding itself in the place where his head had been not seconds before.

"I heard that King Lucci and Queen Hancock are leaving on official royal business in France to form an alliance, and will be driving through the streets of London, specifically down The Mall* at approximately four o'clock s'afternoon." Ace stated proudly, a mischevious glint appearing in his eye.

Zoro threw the now completely dry bone at Luffy's head, who didn't even notice as it bounced off of his forehead, as he was too busy chomping down his final drumstick somewhat vigorously.

He considered the idea for a few seconds.

Buckingham Palace and the little circle of area around it had been left alone by both gangs when they had claimed their territories. Not only because it was royal groud, but because the place was often teaming with MI5 agents. About two years ago, before Nami had joined, Luffy had managed to somehow get trapped in one of the government buildings near to the Palace, having wandered in by accident upon having not paid attention to where he had been going.

Having been feeling slightly hungry, he had seen a bowl of fruit in one of the rooms that he came to. Taking one and eating it straight off, he had put another in his pocket, saving it for his brother. Upon somehow walking out of the government building unnoticed, he returned to the Sunny, giving the fruit to his brother by reaching out to give it to him, thus stretching his arm. The devil fruits made them unable to swim from that point on, but neither of them seemed too bothered.

However, Luffy had been taught the difference between the different areas of London since.

History aside, Zoro could see no reason for not going. "Well then." He said shortly. "Best we pay their royal highnesses a visit." He smirked.

* * *

The long road of The Mall was swarming with London citizens, each holding little flags of the United Kingdom on it, waving them madly and cheering as they laughed and chatted amiably. Among the crowds, the Mugiwara's weaved their way to the front so that they were the closest to the road and were able to see the royal family when they passed.

Then again, the crowds seemed to just move accordingly once they had seen Zoro. Not only because of the fact that Zoro had a huge scowl on his face.

"Nami, I really don't see why you made me leave my swords back on the Thousand Sunny." He grumbled, shooting her a murderous glare which she promptly ignored.

"Because, Zoro, we are out in public in territory that isn't ours-"

"-all the more reason-"

"-and so therefore you would have to be an idiot to be wandering around with three swords when you are about to see a glimpse of the royal family. There are agents everywhere. Your katanas aren't exactly 'hidden' weapons, so they'd be taken away from you and you'd most likely get your arse thrown in jail." Nami ranted, having lost it a little bit as she flicked her short orange hair over her shoulder.

Zoro slumped in defeat. "I guess..." He muttered. "But I feel a little vulnerable without them."

Thatch slung an arm around his friends shoulders and shook him humorously. "Don't worry 'bout it! Look at Ace and Luffy, they don't have weapons and they're fine!" The withering look that Zoro gave him made the cook wince slightly. "Oh, devil fruits...right...bad example." He said, taking his arm away from Zoro's shoulders once more.

A boy who wasn't looking where he was going suddenly ran into Ace and fell over backwards with a cry. Suprised, the Mugiwara's stared at the boy. Ace bent down until he was on his knees and helped the boy up.

"Hey, are you ok?" Ace asked in concern.

The boy's eyes had welled up a little with tears from the pain of having fallen over, his short blonde hair covered with a small brown golfer cap that really didn't go with his expensive blue tailormade jacket and black trousers.

"Mmhm." The boy nodded, refusing to look at Ace.

"How old are you?" The gang member asked, trying not to scare the kid.

The boy glanced up to meet Ace's eyes for less than a second before darting away again. "Twelve." He mumbled, using his tongue to nervously explore the gap in his tooth. "Why...What do you want to know for?" He asked.

Luffy overheard and started laughing. "Hahaha! I like this kid!" He laughed. He bent down so that he was also knelt down in front of the boy beside his brother. "Hey, kid, what's your name, eh?" He asked enthusiastically.

"Sabo." The boy said, raising his chin defiantly as though he sensed a challenge, or daring Luffy to laugh at him. Instead, Luffy gave him a huge one hundred kilowatt grin, making Sabo blink rapidly in suprise whereas Ace merely facepalmed beside him.

"That's a great name!" Luffy grinned, holding his hand out for Sabo to shake. "Name's Luffy, and this is my brother, Ace." He introduced, his grin getting wider -if it was possible- as Sabo nervously took his hand and shook it hesitantly as Ace nodded to him with a smile.

A female gasp of horror went up. "SABO." A woman with an ugly face and long blonde hair cried. "Come over here this INSTANT."

Sabo pulled a face and groaned. "Damn it...Hide me?" He smiled weakly, making Ace chuckle.

"That your mum?" He asked, nodding to her.

Sabo nodded. "Wish she wasn't. We're nobles and are great things, things I don't want to be, are expected of me. She's a witch...and don't get me started on my dad." He muttered miserably.

The green haired seventeen year-old took a sudden interest in the conversation, seeing the small kid in an extremely similar position that he had once been in. The thought of offering the kid to stay with them crossed his mind for a mere blur of a second, but he dismissed it just as quickly. He didn't even know the kid. Not to mention that he was way too young to do what they did.

_'You were only a year older when you ran away.'_His conscience whispered. He told it to shut up.

"SABO." The woman shrieked, having suddenly registered who her son was standing with. The woman started to bustle over to them, making Sabo turn to Ace desperately.

Ace didn't know what made him do it. He quickly leaned in and whispered something fast into Sabo's ear, who was wide eyed in shock.

_"If you ever decide to run away and be free like us, go to One Piece Avenue and knock on the warehouse door hard six times. But tell no one. And not until you think you're ready. Not until you think you're strong enough. Ok?"_

Leaning back out he stared into Sabo's eyes intently, whose own eyes held a mixture of both shock and gratitude as he looked up to Ace. "Thank you." Sabo whispered, not even noticing as his mother bore down upon him and snatched his hand, instead giving the Mugiwara's his first grin since he's met them.

"Sabo! Why didn't you listen to me when I told you not to run off?" The woman scolded harshly, yanking hard on his arm so that he winced in pain. The woman turned to look at Zoro, but he merely stared at her somewhat intimidatingly.

"I'm sorry, Roronoa Zoro. I didn't mean for him to-"

"Don't hurt the boy, and get out of my sight. He did nothing wrong." Zoro voice interupted monotoniously, his gaze never wavering from the ugly, ashen faced woman stood before him. The woman nodded and dragged Sabo out of sight, who when he turned to get one final glance at Zoro, watched as the green haired swordsman winked at him with a slight smirk.

Suprisingly, it was Chopper who punched Ace's back as the D brother started to stand up. As Ace turned to look at the doctor in bewilderment, Chopper pounced on him and pinned him to the pavement. "Ace!" Chopper hissed. "Our life isn't ideal! Sure as hell not for him! He's a child, a boy!"

"And he's upset with his life! He doesn't want it!" Ace protested. "I did what I thought was right. He's got a chance, if he wants it."

Zoro picked the little reindeer up off of Ace's back, allowing him to stand up. "Oi, Chopper. As much as I understand why you're against what Ace did, I agree with him." He said as he set Chopper on the floor. The Mugiwara's turned to look at him, Thatch giving him a knowing look. "That kid most likely would rather than kill himself rather than have to follow a dream that he doesn't believe in. So Ace has probably just given him a chance at life. I wouldn't be suprised if the kid turns up in about two weeks. Give or take."

"Want to bet?" Nami muttered.

"A fiver on it." Zoro agreed, shaking Nami's hand to seal it.

"What's this you're betting on? How long it's gonna take for MI5 to find you?" Sanji's condescending voice cut in snidely.

Zoro glared at him. "What are you doing here curly-brow?" He growled.

The blonde spread his arms wide with a knowing smile. "I'm here for the same reason as you! Here to have a good time."

"Yeah," Nami snorted, "we have very different ideas of 'having a good time'." Ace immediately sniggered into his shoulder, trying not say anything witty that would set them all off.

Sanji narrowed his eyes at them for a second. "You are all of you pathetic." He spat, watching gleefully as Zoro bristled slightly, as did Luffy on his other side. "But I wonder if you could change that...if I challenge you to a dare." He said slyly. There was a silence, in which he took the opportunity to continue. "I think you could prove your bravery, if you were to attack the royal family as they drive by, and get away with it."

"No." Zoro stated flatly, his tone brooking no argument. Instead he nodded his head to the others and they started to move forwards, past Sanji and his gang. "Besides, we know that you could give the royals a heart attack just by showing them that weird curly eyebrow of yours." He smirked.

Said eyebrow twitched, but a cough from his right coming from Brook made him realise that if he started a fight, the agents -or police even- would be on him faster than a fleeting thought. He gasped as he felt a hard fist connect with his stomach, making him splutter for a second. Turning, he made to kick Zoro in between his well muscled shoulderblades, but Marco quickly dragged him back and into the crowd along with the rest of their gang.

Moving on in high spirits, the Mugiwara gang happily started to blend in with the crowd, taking in the enthusiasm around them as people waved the British flags everywhere, pressed up against the railing the was situated down the entire length of the Mall.

Slipping inbetween people easily thanks to Nami's stealth, the gang managed to make their way to the front of the pulsing crowds and leant up against the metal rail that seperated the people from the road. A sharp breeze picked up and the leaves of the trees that lined the Mall started to rustle and occasionally flutter down to the pavement, where they were trampled upon.

Ussop suddenly turn on Nami, who stared at him in surprise. "Oi Nami! That's _my _pocket you're trying to pick." He hissed at her, his voice barely higher than a whisper.

The orange haired girl felt her cheekbones flush as she quickly retracted her hand. "O-Oh...right." She muttered, wrinking her nose in embarrassment as she set about targeting the other people in the crowd that were positioned around her.

Thatch rolled his eyes. "Nice to see that someone is still on the job. Did she tell you she's been pickpocketing the same guy everyday for a month now? The poor guy's frantic, but he still can't see how our little cat is deriving her entertainment from him." He chuckled, making Zoro grin in amusement.

"Say, Zoro, why didn't you accept Sanji's dare?" Luffy asked inquisitively.

"Luffy. The number of agents that will be here is going to be riddiculous and they would be on us quicker than lighting a flame from a lighter. So I'm going to ignore you and pretend you didn't ask that." Zoro sighed, rubbing his temple.

An exclamation stopped any other conversation that could have been started at that moment. "HEY GUYS! THE ROYAL CAR IS COMING DOWN THE ROAD!" Chopper yelled excitedly, jumping up and down in his full deer form so that his hooves clattered noisily on the pavement. However, this noise was lost as the crowd around them took up the cry and started to cheer loudly, waving their flags joyously in the air.

The Mugiwara cook nudged Zoro and nodded his head in the direction that was directly opposite them. Zoro followed his gaze and immediately narrowed his eyes at the sight before him. On the other side of the Mall, the Kārī gang were stood in a show of power as they menaced those around them slightly, making the crowd back off a little as they forced their way to the front.

Ace raised an eyebrow and nudged Ussop, a wicked grin appearing on his face. "Oi, Ussop. Dare you to put a paint bomb right in the middle of Sanji's face." He muttered in an undertone. With a grin just as evil, Ussop's hand stole into his satchel and pulled out his slingshot, swiftly fitting a small orange pellet into it.

Focusing, he used Sanji's curly eyebrow as a honing device. Just as he let fly, Sanji's eye widened in slow motion as he saw the paint pellet come hurtling towards him.

But it never reached him.

A stunned silence settled over the crowds of London as everyone flinched at the sound of the paint pellet exploding upon impact...

...of the royal car.

Time slowed down as it continued to drive down the length of the Mall, but when time finally caught up, Zoro managed to snap himself out of his daze for long enough to roughly yank the slingshot out of Ussop's hands. Ace nearly fell over in hysterics at seeing Ussop's mortified face as Zoro turned on him and gripped the front of his shirt.

Across the Mall, Sanji's face was livid. "That was meant for me." He growled.

"Oyabin..." Vivi started nervously, gently placing her hand on his shoulder and stroking it carefully.

"Sanji." Trafalgar stated calmly in a slight warning.

"Those flashy bastards!" Buggy nearly screamed, shaking his fist at the Mugiwara gang. Brook shook his skull at his companion's overly agressive nature.

Sanji went to move forwards, Marco and Kidd moving either side of him in unison as the others started to follow. Suddenly he saw a flash of something that caught his eye, something that turned into multiple somethings. For a second he was on edge, until he saw the direction which they were heading. Glancing at his adversary, he grinned wickedly and motioned to his gang. Seconds later, they had melted back into the crowd and disappeared.

At the last second, Zoro managed to catch the grin that Sanji had sent at him. He frowned in confusion as he finally handed Ussop's slingshot back to him. Moments later, he turned back to his group, only to have Luffy, Ace and Thatch all pulling and tugging at him, frantically nodding their heads in the same direction.

"They saw you with that damned slingshot." Thatch hissed at him. Zoro curled his lip inwards and bit down on his bottom lip in irritation.

Suddenly Luffy started to freak out and tugged on Ace's wrist. "Ace, Ace we need to get _out_of here. G-Gramps is heading towards us!" He exclaimed. Immediately Ace snapped into action.

"Ok, we need to get out of here and head back. We...We need to...Thatch! What should we do?" He appealed to his friend desperately as he started to panic, watching as the agents started to bear down on them.

"We split up." Zoro intervened quickly. "They saw me with the slingshot, so they'll go after me. With any luck, they don't know you are with me. You guys split up in case, but I want no devil fruit users together. Am I understood? Meet back at the Sunny." He ordered.

They nodded, each splitting into groups whereas Zoro took off on his own, sprinting as he pushed through the crowds, allowing no one to get in his way as they either jumped aside or were thrown with cries of surprise. In his mind, cursed Nami for making him leave his three katana's at the base. Unfortunately for him, the streets of London were all but deserted since everyone had been at the Mall, so as he twisted and turned down every street he could, trying to ignore the rapid running footsteps behind him, drawing ever closer.

After what seemed like ages, Zoro's limbs were tiring. His muscles screamed at him, begging him to stop, or to at least slow down. But the swordsmaster knew that if he did, he would be helpless and at the mercy of the agents of MI5. And there was no way he was having that.

He turned into what he thought was another street, only to be met with a brick wall that was covered with peices of moss. Cursing in frustration he turned back, only to be met with four agents, effectively cornering him. He glanced at each of them, taking in their features. One, he already knew, was Luffy and Ace's grandfather, Garp. The others he wasn't sure of. A tall one with curly brown dreadlocks, one that had slicked back purple/black hair with a cigar hanging out of his mouth, and one -that for a mere second Zoro mistook as Ussop- that had a long rectangular like nose.

Glancing around him, he spied a broken metal grating on the floor. Without hesitating, he dived down through it feet first, only to find himself all but falling down a ladder. He managed to grab onto either side of the ladder, hissing in pain as they burnt the palms of his hands as he slid to the bottom, landing safely on the pavement.

Blanching as he breathed in, he realised he'd taken a won-way ticket to the sewers. He heard a clamour above him, which spurred him back into action as he took off down the edge of the pavement that lined either side of the sewer. Sprinting the length of the sewers, he followed it round, slowly adjusting his eyes to the dim light and his nose to the horrendous stench.

When he could finally take no more of either, he climbed the next ladder he came to. Considering he had passed many ladders, the agents would not have much of a lead if he disappeared now.

Climbing the ladder, he removed the manhole that covered the entrance to the upper world and swiftly clambered out. He coughed to clear his throat and wet his lips as he looked around him. He was in a more rundown part of the city now, which was no where near the warehouse. Looking towards the sun, he could see it was getting close to approximately seven o'clock.

Scrunching his face up in irritation, he spied a metal ladder that ran up the side of a small-ish building, with a broken sign that would have once read 'escape route'. Seeing no other option, he began to climb. Placing one hand on the rungs, then the other. Pulling himself up to the next step before repeating the process with both his hands on feet. Upon reaching to top, he noticed that there were three metal chimney's that he knew were usually found above restaurants.

He wandered over to the closest one which was situated in front of a square brick wall that had stairs in it, leading down into the building. It was the only one that wasn't active and blowing out billows of white hot steam, and so he sat inside it, the edges concealing him from the world as he leaned back and relaxed, allowing his screaming muscles to rest and calm down.

Sighing, he mentally shook his head in resignation before he started to doze off, letting his mind go completely blank.

Not twenty minutes later, he woke to being roughly being hauled out of the chimney. His eyes flashed open, seeing eveything in a blur. He could see a flash of pink hair and a another black bushy afro. As he felt hands grabbing his shoulder, he blindly swung out a punch as he backed away.

Punches rained into his stomach hard in response and he doubled over. Seconds later he brought his fists up again in two swift uppercuts, trying to fend them off so that he could make a break for it, but his hair was roughly grabbed, making him yell out before his head collided with the brick wall behind the chimney.

For Zoro, everything suddenly went black.

* * *

Conscious thoughts started to echo through Zoro's mind as he started to wake up. The first thing he thought of, was a self command. '_Don't open your eyes'. _Followed quickly by a swarm of memories that overwhelmed his mind, making him bite his tongue to prevent him from groaning out loud. Still keeping his eyes closed, he breathed in deeply through his nose. Wherever he was, it smelt like bleach. Of...cleanliness.

He moved his wrists slightly, only to feel a sharp material like tug on them. The same thing occured when he repeated the movement with his ankles. He very quickly came to the conclusion that he had been bound to some kind of chair. Slowly, bit by bit, he started to loosen the bonds that held him, working his way through what seemed to be rope before he felt them start to get a little looser.

Zoro decided to take a chance, and groggily opened his eyes, shutting them again almost instantaniously when he was nearly blinded. Opening his eyes a crack, he waited, blinking a few times before averting his eyes away from the one bright light that was hung above him.

Looking around, he saw that he was in a room. An all-white room. Turning his head around and surveying the room, he noted that there was one large mirror on the side of the long wall. Taking a peek at himself in it, he saw that he had a small line of blood that had dripped down the side of his face from where he had been knocked out earlier. He grimaced slightly. Turning his attention back to the room, he saw that there was a solid wooden desk in front of him, and most importantly, the door was situated behind him.

He frowned for a second, trying to figure out what was going on. When it finally clicked, he groaned. "Arghhhh, god." He mumbled, tilting his head back and raising his eyes skyward as if in prayer.

His head whipped around to the side as the door started to open from behind him, and he winced slightly when it was slammed and locked from outside, making him try and twist his head around to see who it was that had entered. Footsteps could be heard striding towards him, but he couldn't see the person properly. Just a flash of black and a hint of a plumed hat.

Then recognisation clicked in. "Aw fuck no." He groaned, screwing his eyes shut and hanging his head defeatedly for a second, mentally preparing as he scowled to himself.

"Don't you_ dare _take that tone young man. Do you have_ ANY _idea how serious this is...or what you've done? You could have cost this country it's decency and lost a valuable alliance between England and France." A sharp voice said from behind him, the voice cold and cutting with anger.

"God damn it just leave me alone."

A sharp pain hit the back of his head, making him yelp and struggle against the bonds, annoyed that he couldn't reach up to massage the hurt area. "OW." He yelled, glaring at the floor.

"IT SEEMS YOU CAN'T _BE_ LEFT ALONE BECAUSE YOU ARE AN IRRISPONSIBLE, LITTLE, _BOY._"

"NO I'M NOT, HOW WOULD YOU KNOW ANYWAY? I LEAD MY LIFE, YOU LEAD YOURS. THAT'S HOW IT IS. HOW IT ALWAYS WILL BE. "

"I'VE SEEN YOU ON THE NEWS, YOU IDIOT. You cover your tracks well don't you...but not well enough. Not to my eyes. And so due to one stupid error, it seems you've been brought here. How unfortunate. I guess family can't be kept apart."

"I don't call you family."

"I am your father, and you will address me as such, boy. Because your life is about to change."

"Oh fuck off and stop interfering. I'm fine as I am-"

Pain exploded in the back of his head for the second time, making Zoro grit his teeth and shake his head like a dog, as through trying to shake away the pain and the nightmare that he found himself being submitted to. "GOD DAMN IT, DON'T TOUCH ME."

"WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?"

Zoro flexed his muscles, the ropes snapping under such sudden intense pressure after having been loosened that tiny bit earlier. Finally, Zoro turned to properly face his tormentor.

"Hawk-Eye Mihawk, the guy in charge of MI5 and unfortunately the man I get to call my father." Zoro spat in contempt. He lauched a punch at Mihawk's face. Mihawk caught it and swiftly twisted Zoro's arm up behind his back, slamming him over the desk.

"GET OFF." Zoro yelled in irritation.

"You, are in need of a lesson, Roronoa. Good thing you'll be staying with me for a while so you can learn it." Mihawk hissed, pushing Zoro's arm further up his back, making him squirm in an attempt to loosen the pressure that he could feel building in his shoulderblade.

"I ran away from you a long time ago so I could avoid those lessons. Nothing has changed since then you fucking bastard." Zoro growled angrily, trying to use his other arm to elbow Mihawk in the chest.

Mihawk's face suddenly darkened with anger.

Zoro yelped as he felt his fathers hand connected with his backside. "Wh-What the he-OW!" He stuttered, his voice breaking off as he recieved another blow. "What are you doing?" He asked frantically, trying to shift off of the desk unsuccessfully, only resulting in another smack.

"Punishing you, Roronoa." Mihawk stated coldly, filling Zoro with dread as he felt himself being dragged back in time to when he must have been at least eight.

"B-B-But this is stupid." Zoro began, feeling slightly unsure of himself.

"So is your attitude, which is why I'm sorting it out." Mihawk replied, unleashing a hard, punishing blow to his son's clothed bottom, making Zoro tense his shoulders and struggle even more.

Zoro arched his back in an attempt to stand up, but Mihawk narrowed his eyes and dragged Zoro off of the table, seating himself and placing him over his lap instead as if he weight no more than a feather. "H-HEY! CUT IT OUT!" Zoro yelled, trying to shunt forwards.

Mihawk then decided it was time to step it up a notch, seeing as the message wasn't really sinking in, and he swiftly hooked Zoro's trousers and hauled them to his knees in one move.

Zoro widened his eyes and both hands instinctively went to his butt in an attempt to pull them back up. "Ah, ah, ah." Mihawk tutted, grabbing both of Zoro's wrists and pinning them securely to his back as he landed another smack.

"Fucking hell, you old son of a-YOWCH!" Zoro yelped mid-curse as Mihawk's palm stung against his boxer-clad bottom sharply, making him wriggle slightly. "Bloody HELL." He yelled angrily. "UNHAND ME YOU BASTARD!"

Mihawk sighed and brought his hand down as firmly as he dared without putting too much strength into it, yet making sure it stung with a loud slapping sound. Zoro bit down hard on his bottom lip as he almost cried out in pain. He was about to shout again, when Mihawk's voice interupted him.

"If you do not cut down on the swearing young man, you shall make this worse than it already is." Mihawk scolded him harshly, his tone of voice making Zoro cringe momentarily before gritting his teeth.

"Oh yeah? Fuck you." Zoro growled, not giving up as he tried to arch his back again in an attempt to stand up.

"Obviously, you are not learning." Mihawk said flatly, yanking down Zoro's boxers in answer to what was meant to be the boy's rhetorical question.

"H-HEY!" Zoro yelled, starting to panic.

Mihawk cleared his throat. "Regretting your decisions already? Then obviously you are not as strong as you think." He said coldly, his hand increasing the force and striking without pause, hitting the boy's sit spots hard.

Zoro noticed the increase, and they got harder with each spank. His legs started to kick out involuntarily. "o-OW! YOU NEVER CARED ANY-OW!-ANYWAY!" The swordsman screeched, the pain building up heavily as Mihawk spanked him thoroughly like a small child. "OW! JES-OWWW-WW-WWW! FUCK OF-OWWW! YOWCH! _OW-OW-OW-OW!"_

Hot, angry, pain-filled tears suddenly started to emerge in the corners of his eyes, and he blinked furiously to try and keep them at bay, but the hard swats seemed to come harder and faster, not giving any time for recovery. Soon his tears travelled down the side of his face, and his shouts evolved into wails of pain as his legs thrashed wildly when Mihawk covered his upper thighs too.

Mihawk knew that Zoro had given in to his punishment when he felt to boy go limp over his lap, and the slight hiccup of a sob that racked his chest. He smirked slightly, and stopped after another fifteen swift, full-force spanks to Zoro's crimson coloured bare rear-end, hauling his son upright.

"You, boy, are going to join MI5." Mihawk snarled as Zoro cautiously pulled his boxers and trousers up, whimpering as the material passed over his incrediably tender skin. "Do you understand me?"

Zoro nodded, his eyes downcast as he attempted to hide his tearful face. "Y-Yes." He stuttered quietly, not wanting to incur his father's wrath once more.

"Yes what?" Mihawk pressed dangerously.

"Y-Yes father." Zoro completed, trying not to allow his emotions to rule him, the anger, shame, humiliation and complete rage burning him from the inside as he fought himself to keep polite.

"Good. You are to stay here and wait until I send someone to collect you. If you dare to move even a muscle from this chair-"

"I won't. I p-promise." Zoro said quickly, trying not to squirm in pain as he sat.

Mihawk 'hmm'd and turned, heading out of the door and slamming it behind him angrily, making Zoro jump slightly.

A red-haired man was leaning on a railing that was situated just in front of the mirror-disguised window, and he chuckled quietly as the seething Mihawk swept by him, making the head agent turn and step over to join him at the window.

"What is it Shanks?" Mihawk asked emotionlessly, his jaw clenching tightly.

Shanks glanced at him pointedly."Looks like someone got a lttle heavy handed." He commented with a smirk.

"Hm...Well, I won't take any cheek. Especially not from my own son." Mihawk muttered angrily, clenching and unclenching hi jaw reeaedly. The red-headed agent raised an eye-brow.

"You managed to br-"

"You dare to finish that sentance...Shanks..." Mihawk interrupted dangerously.

Shanks just grinned in response. "Still. I didn't know that flesh could go a deeper shade than my hair." He said.

"Hmmm...Well if he doesn't learn, he'll find that he will never be able to sit down again. Then he'll wish he'd listened the first time." Mihawk said grimly.

"Well a little parental discipline never hurt anyone. No pun intnded."

Mihawk smirked wryly and clapped his friend on the shoulder. "I've done my bit...so I'll leave the rest to you." He said, his brow furrowing into a mask of annoyance as he sighed. "Damn it. That kid's a pain in the arse, even when he was little. I would go back into that room and introduce him to his new life...but-"

"But you're the head of MI5, you have a job to run, and you have to keep up the fatherly 'I won't take your bullshit' look." Shanks supplied.

"Mm." He agreed.

Shanks let out a long sigh. "So what do you want me to do with him?" He asked, looking back through the window at the cursing teenager who was trying not to move so as not to increase his suffering.

"I'd say let him be for a while, I don't know, twenty minutes to allow him to simmer down, then take him to the living quarters and give him the full rundown of what goes on around here and what he'll be expected to do." Mihawk suggested. "By the way, I give you my full permission to deal with him in any way you see fit if he starts up." He added.

"Yes Sir." Shanks noted with a smirk, mock saluting him so that Mihawk frowned and slapped his hand down.

"But I warn you, he's going to try and block you at every obstacle. If he's anything like me, he's stubborn to the last." Mihawk said in finality as he started to move off. "Good luck." He called as he strode away purposefully and out into the corridor, closing the door behind him.

Shanks turned back to the window and tested the edge of his teeth with his tongue. "This is going to be interesting." He murmured out loud to himself.

* * *

_**I warned you. =L**_

**_This might make you laugh, but I listened to ALL the James Bond opening themes whilst writing this fic. That and a few other artists such as Tenacious D, BBC Sherlock OST, Black Sabbath and The Avengers OST._**

**_Who's cool? You're cool. And what's cooler than being cool?_**

**_Ice cold. ;D_**

**_Hope you enjoyed! And PLEASE review! ^^_**

**_Kai XxxXxxX_**


	4. Chapter 4

**Black as Knight.**

_**Ahahahahaaa~! I am EVER SO HAPPY that people have been reviewing! Keep it coming, please! ^^D**_

_**You guys make me so proud...=')**_

_**By the way, MERRY CHRISTMAS/JOYEUX NOEL/FROHLICHES WEIHNACHTEN/[Insert whatever you celebrate here].**_

_**Whatever you celebrate, make it a good one.**_

_**Sherlock: Meretricious**_  
_**Lestrade:And a happy new year!**_  
_**;D**_

* * *

**Chapter 4.**

Zoro had fumed in silence for the half an hour in which he had been left alone, his mind raging in anger. So he didn't notice Shanks quietly enter through the door until he spoke.

"So, Zoro, right? My name is Shanks, second in command to your father. I'll be introducing you to your new life here at MI5." He greeted warmly, his mouth lifting in smile that came way too easily seeing as he was an MI5 agent.

"Let me out of here." Zoro muttered quietly, making Shanks frown slightly.

"I can't do that. You are not to go back to the streets. That is your past life. Here at MI5 you will be trained in many disciplines before being allowed on missions. Once trusted and given full admission to everything within MI5, you will finally be allowed to join the higher up ranks, where you will help to guard our royal family. But to join those higher ranks, you will be tested on your ability to do such jobs."

Zoro sighed, closing his eyes. "I don't have any choice...Do I." He stated in resignation, slumping down in the chair a little.

"No, to be honest. But I shall warn you, we do not take disobedience lightly. We will take action at the slightest sign of it. So let's hope you're not a rule breaker, for your sake." Shanks told him seriously.

The teen groaned, making Shanks smirk slightly as he held out his hand to help him up. "Follow me. I'll show you to your living quarters." Zoro momentarily glared at the hand before standing up, without the aid.

Shanks rolled his eyes and started walking, heading out into the corridor and making sure that his charge followed him closely as they turned down the many deserted corridors. "Your living quarters will be just that. Your room, your bathroom, everything. It will be where you stay when you are not otherwise engaged in training or missions. You probably won't be in there much, seeing as we're going to be drilling a lot into you in such a short space of time, but that's because we need more agents out there on the job."

"Sounds like you got your hands full." Zoro grunted, glancing about him at the brick-coloured walls either side of him and Shanks, who smiled at the comment.

"True that." He laughed. "You are to be put under my supervision, and I will be your main trainer, seeing as we need to get you up to speed. But I'm not going to be your only trainer. The other agents all have specialities that you will be tutored in, and you'll find out about those later. Oh, you're not my only trainee either. We've got another, name of Coby. He's a little further ahead than you, but I'm sure the two of you will get along fine."  
Minutes later, they walked through a door into a large open room, filled with sofa's, tables and chairs, a cupboard full of books, and another stocked with what looked like wine. Sadly, Zoro noticed, nothing stronger was to be seen among them. "This place here, is what we like to call the 'common room'. Where you come in after a mission and sit and relax, or play cards, or...whatever." Shanks shrugged with a smirk. "But through here," He said as he walked off through another narrow door at the end of the common room, into a long corridor, "are all the doors to the bedrooms. And this one here is yours. Number 221. Keep it clean and tidy, cause the cleaners will kick your ass otherwise."

Zoro stared at the hard oak wooden door before back at Shanks. "Cleaners? I don't want no cleaners going through my shi-" He paused as Shanks raised an eyebrow at him. "...Stuff." He muttered finally.

Shanks grinned and pressed something into the teenagers hand. "Well, here's your keys. It's about eight pm now, so get some sleep. I want you up and in the common room tomorrow at six. Ok?" With that, he turned on his heel and meandered his way back down the corridor.

"S-Six?!" Zoro spluttered. "In the morni-You've got to be fucking kidding me!" He shouted.

"Keep a lid on the language. And yes, six in the morning. Even a minute late, and I'll be coming to get ya'." Shanks warned him, showing him a hint of a devilish smile before disappearing into the common room.

Using the keys to open the door to his room, he noticed that it looked like a fancy hotel room. Down to the ensuite bathroom filled with the whole kit of toothbrush, toothpaste, flannels, clean towels, the lot. As for the bedroom itself, it had a small flatscreen tv located in the corner of the room that was turned to face the bed. The bed was in the centre of the room, and was rather large and comfortable looking. Next to it, there was a small coffee table with a light and a den-den mushi on it, a selection of quick dial numbers on it. There was also what looked like a work desk, with pens and paper, a small light and various bits and pieces. On the far side of the room, sat a chest of drawers and a small wardrobe, all made out of the same oak as the door.

He closed the door behind him and wandered over to the wardrobe and chest of drawers, opening them one by one and peering inside them curiously. He found night clothes, changes of underwear, relaxing comfortable clothes, training clothes, and weirdly, a black work suit complete with shiny shoes and a black tie.

Raising an eyebrow, he closed them again as he shook his head with a small laugh. Taking a pair of night clothes out of the drawer, he changed into them, carefully folding his normal clothes and placing them at the bottom of the drawer underneath everything else. He knew that MI5 would want to crush that out of him, and getting rid of them would be the first thing they did.

Cursing, he realised that he still didn't have his katanas, which were back at the base with the others. "I need to get out of here. First chance I get." He muttered to himself as he slid into bed.

With a pissed off, irritated sigh, he turned the light off and tried to sleep.

* * *

The next morning, Zoro found himself being rudely awoken to a hammering on his door. "FUCK OFF." He yelled in response with his deep, croaky, early morning voice as he pulled the covers up over his head and groaned from deep within in his throat.

"Z-Zoro? It's like ten to six. I j-just thought I should help you get up so that Shanks doesn't come to get you." A nervous voice replied, their voice muffled by the door.

"Wh...What?" He muttered in confusion. He sat up and looked around him, taking in his surroundings. The cleanliness of it, the unfamilliar-ness. Then it clicked. "Aw hell. Ah hell no...Ah, fuck NO." He shouted, his voice rising in volume as he began to panic. "I DID NOT WANT THIS. I SHOULD BE LEFT ALONE." He yelled, stripping himself of his night clothes and leaving them strewn on the bed as he quickly showered in a record time of at least three minutes.

"First chance I get. First fucking chance. I am NOT an early riser. I swear to god, if anyone tries to stop me from leaving, I will leave them in a pile of bones and squished flesh." He grumbled darkly, towelling his hair dry before dressing in the training suit that he swiftly plucked from the cupboard, deciding that he might as well try to look the part if he was going to pretend to go along with the bastards.

A minute before six, Zoro nearly ran at the door and grabbed the handle. Then he paused, his hand still on the handle glanced at the clock and then down at himself.

"What the fuck am I doing?" He questioned, laughing shortly at his idiocy.

With that, he turned the lock on the door and remade his bed neatly. Having done so, he promptly sat down and laid back on it with his hands comfortably behind his head, which was relaxed into the pillow. He closed his eyes, glad that the annoying voice had decided to bugger off.

Barely a minute later, he jumped as his door was hammered upon multiple times. "ZORO. GET OUT HERE NOW." Shanks's voice yelled from outside the door, his voice ringing clearly.

Zoro scowled at the ceiling for a second, deliberating on answering. After a moment, he decided against it, instead opting to close his eyes and lay back, hoping that if he ignored him, he would go away.

He jumped terribly as the door swung open with a bang. Shanks strode in purposefully, his blazing eyes making Zoro shrink back into the pillow. "When I give you an order, Zoro, I expect it to be followed." Shanks said, his voice dangerous. Zoro was a little shaken at the change. Yesterday, the red-haired man had been rather...well...nice. Now the teenager knew that Shanks had not been joking about coming in after him.

"Seeing as you're all ready to go, I'm going to be lenient and let you off. So get up." Shanks sighed at length. "Now." He added forcefully when Zoro made no attempt to move.

"And if I say no?" Zoro questioned in a polite, even tone.

Shanks eyed him. "You don't want to find out. But I can assure you that it'll be painful." He answered, his voice also dangerously polite.

Muttering irritably, Zoro heaved himself up off of the bed. "Why are we even getting up this early?" He asked, following Shanks out of the room and towards the common room. "I mean, no idiot in their right mind would-"

He finally noticed a boy of about the same age that had evidently been waiting for them, dressed in similar black training clothes, which clashed with his bright bubblegum pink hair. A memory whizzed through Zoro's mind at high speed, in which he remembered a flash of pink hair before his head had collided with the brick wall that had knocked him out the day before.

It clicked as his mind made the connection.

With an angry, wordless roar, he launched imself at the boy, tackling him to the wall and managing to get in a few good punches before Shanks grabbed him and hauled him away, hitting him upside the head in reprimand as he placed himself between the two teenagers.

"Oi, Coby. Are you alright?" Shanks questioned, not taking his eyes off of the darkly muttering green-haired rogue.

"Y-Yeah." Came the shaky response. "Just surprised and winded is all...I think."

Zoro grimaced as Shanks grabbed the scruff of his black training shirt and shook him like a kitten. "Feel like explaining that little tantrum?" He asked, raising an inquisitive eyebrow.

"Pinky-locks over there is one of the two who brought me to this hell hole." Zoro spat, glaring at said boy, who slowly brought his hands up in a defensive gesture.

Shanks rolled his eyes and hit him around the head again. "Well instead of trying to beat him up, try paying attention to the fact that it only took two of them to bring you in. That and the fact that you can't do anything about it." He instructed authoritively.

The former Mugiwara gang leader was more than prepared to argue it out. But there was something about Shanks which made him rethink the idea, instead opting to keep his mouth shut and give him a very slight, curt nod.

The red-head smirked inwardly at the gesture, remembering Mihawk's warning of how stubborn his son could be. _'Well, there's certainly that. But it seems that amongst all that, he has a brain. And he knows how to use it too..Maybe I'll be able to put it to good use.'_ He thought with a small, barely noticeable snort.

"Follow me." Shanks ordered, making sure he kept an eye on the both of them, who said not a word to each other as they walked behind him, keeping close so as not to get lost in the maze of corridors that he led them down, twisting and turning in what Zoro was sure was a never-ending building.

Minutes later, Shanks brought them into what looked like some weird classroom, or meeting room. There was a map pinned to the whiteboard and two small desks had been placed in front of two chairs, small pieces of paper on top with pens apiece. Zoro glanced at Coby as the kid sat down in one of the chairs. He could feel Shanks watching him, so he decided to play along and sat down in the seat beside Coby with a barely supressed sigh.

"Ok." Shanks stated, standing in front of the map. "Coby is a little further ahead of you Zoro, so you're gonna have to try and keep up. I'm gonna be putting you both through intelligence training. It'll include things like maps, which is what we're gonna do this session. Each session will last approximately two hours. Other times I'll be testing you on your knowledge of the roads, what to do in certain situations, what counteracts what...for example certain poisons...but you get my gist. So, let's start shall we?" He asked brightly.

At first, Shanks got them to write down as many street names as they could remember from around London. Zoro knew a couple, but he knew them all by sight. And that wasn't the only problem. He hadn't used a pen, hell not even a pencil, for nigh on four years. He could just about form letters at first, but after writing down a couple of street names, he managed to join the letters up to form words, albeit in very untidy scrawl.

When Shanks got them to stop, Zoro's eyes widened a fraction when Coby stated that he had been able to recall nearly two hundred. He had only written about eleven, which was a meagre amount in comparison.

Coby frowned. "But Shanks-sensei, there are ten's of thousands of streets in London. It would be almost impossible to remember them all."

Shanks smiled. "Exactly Coby, that's why I know you wouldn't be able to list them all."

"Well then it was a pointless exercise." Zoro stated tonelessly.

The red-haired man stared at him for a second and tilted his head. "Ok then, why do you think I got you to do it then, Zoro?" He asked him, noticing Coby sending Zoro a panicked look as the teenager laughed humourlessly.

"For your entertainment." He answered, his tone blatantly holding a lot of disrespect.

Shanks smirked down at the floor for a second before turning to Zoro, his smirk still on his face. "Really? How narrow minded. It's was merely pointing out the fact that no one could possibly know the streets in London, but by the time I have finished with them, they will be memorised inside your head."

Zoro snorted and looked away. "Whatever. Not gonna happen." He muttered, obviously disbelieving.

The next hour progressed slowly, and Zoro kept glancing at the clock, already bored with the constant repetition of street names and which street had what on it. He answered as best he could when answering questions, but more than often, those best answers often had a smartass comment accopanying them, mainly because he couldn't remember a lot of the street names.

"Zoro. It's like it's going in through one ear and out the other." Shanks stated impatiently, his patience wearing thin. "Can you at least try to remember what I'm telling you? Because I sure as hell won't be the one coming to rescue you when you get yourself lost."

"I'm not going to get lost. I know my half of London." Zoro retorted. "And

"Your half of London? There's no such thing. Anyway, if I was to say that Gro-"

"There is such a thing. As a gang leader, it's my responsibility to know where my territory boundaries are, who's in it, and what's going on." Zoro stated confidently, standing up.

Shanks sighed and rubbed his temple. "Sit down." He ordered.

"Go fuck yourself." Came the reply.

Coby's eyes widened and he retreated into himself a little. "Z-Z-Zor-"

"Shut it kid. Anyone comes after me and I'll leave them dead on the floor. I've had enough." The green-haired teen spat, fully fed up as he turned on his heel and headed to the door.

"Who do you think you are?" Shanks demanded after him.

"Roronoa Zoro, Mugiwara gang leader." Zoro answered as he reached the door.

"Am I supposed to be impressed?" The MI5 deputy questioned, raising an eyebrow.

Zoro jutted his lower jaw out thoughtfully for a second as he turned to look back at Shanks. "You should be." He stated flatly. "Have a nice day." With that, he pushed the door open with a small skip of his foot as he simultaneously pushed it with his hands, stepping outside into the corridor.

Leaving the room behind, he strode off down the corridors, muttering to himself as he went. "Stupid asshole. Thinking he can make me remember all that shit, and do what he tells me to do. Well screw that. I 'ent doing none of it, and Coby can get that stick out of his ass too. Fucking idiot."

Whilst he was muttering, he wasn't look where he was going. So thus he found himself crash-walking into someone coming the other way with their arms full of papers, consequently hurtling to the floor along with the papers and the other person. Zoro sat back on his knees. "Shit." He groaned. "Uhh, sorry."

"It's cool kid." A deep voice chuckled. "You're the new one, right? The head's kid?"

Zoro looked up to see a broad shouldered man whose jet black hair was tied back into a pony-tail. The papers shuffled as the man started to put them back into their neat pile, and Zoro absentmindedly helped him. "...Yeah...And I'm not a kid." He defended himself gruffly.

"Course not kid." The man smirked knowingly. "The name's Benn." He introduced himself, holding out a hand. "So you must be Zoro."

"Mmm." Zoro hummed, taking the proffered hand and shaking it warily before letting it go so that Benn could pick up his papers and stand, as did Zoro. "Know where the exit to this place is?" He questioned suddenly.

Benn stared at him as though assessing him, finally nodding. "Yeah sure. I bet you've been wandering for ages. Follow me."

"Thanks." Zoro sighed, relieved to have found someone that could lead him out of the place so easily. "You're a life saver." A short laugh eminated from Benn, which made Zoro frown slightly at the older man's back. "What?"

"Nothing important, don't worry that mossy little head of yours." Benn chuckled, shifting the papers in his arms as they walked.

Not moments later, Zoro found himself being lead into a large hall full of random stuff, making it look a lot like some weird obstacle course. He stared at it in confusion for a minute, not understanding what was going on. "Hey, I thought you were leading me out?" He asked, looking back at Benn.

"Ah Zoro! So glad to see you again." Shanks' voice rang out from the middle of the gym hall, where Coby was stood next to him. "If it wasn't for Benn here, you probably wouldn't have made it in time for your physical training!" He exclaimed in mock horror.

Then Zoro understood. He whirled upon Benn, noticing that the papers in the agent's arms were completely and utterly blank, which he hadn't noticed the first time round. "You son of a bitch!" He shouted angrily.

Benn shrugged. "We weren't gonna let you go that easy kid. Now hurry up and start learning. We're expecting high things of you, you know."

"Save it for the choir." Zoro laughed humourlessly. Benn raised his eyebrows for a second at Shanks who rolled his eyes in return.

"Well good luck anyway." Benn nodded, turning and heading back out of the large gym.

Zoro locked his jaw in irritation as he saw no other choice but to join Shanks and Coby in the middle of the hall. He said nothing, and so silence reigned in the hall. Until Shanks started laughing hysterically. Coby and Zoro glanced at each other for a second before Zoro remembered that he hated the S.O.B (Son Of a Bitch) and decided to ask the million dollar question.

"What's so funny?" He asked irritatedly.

Shanks pretended to wipe his eyes. "Oh you're hilarious. It's like you hate the world, and you're so determined to make it hard for yourself because you have so much pride that you seem to think you can't let go of." He laughed heartily. The laughter stopped as quickly as it started. "Now both of you, we're going to start with the ropes. I want you up and down your ropes at least two-hundred times. No less. Get going." He ordered.

Coby jumped to it, starting to ascend the rope with surprising agility for one of his rather small size. By the time the pink haired boy had touched back to the ground about two minutes later, Zoro was still stood at the bottomr of his rope, having not even touched it.

"Come on Zoro! Show me what you've got!" Shanks encouraged.

"I can't be asked." Zoro replied monotonously.

"Oh come on, I wanna see how good you are! We've got six hours to complete in here."

Coby turned to Zoro at length. "Hey, I'll race you." He challenged before Zoro could say anything. "First to three hundred and fifty. Loser buys the other three beers." He goaded.

At the mention of beer, Zoro's interest piqued. "Fine. But I'm not losing."

"I'm already one ahead." Coby pointed out, trying to ignore Shanks' amused look.

Zoro suddenly hauled his top up over his head, tossing it on the floor beside his rope. Without another word, he gripped the rope with one hand and tugged it, testing to see whether it would take his weight. Deeming it acceptable, he started to climb. Within less than a minute he was back next to Coby, not panting in the slightest. "You were saying bitch?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow.

Coby grinned, and the both of them began to race each other as time after time they hauled themselves up the rope and back down again. After a while though, when Coby reached seventy six climbs of the rope after half an hour, he began to regret the challenge slightly. Zoro was six climbs ahead of him, and was showing no signs of tiring. Stealing a glance at the teen, Coby could see the strong muscles in his stomach and arms. Hell, even the muscles in Zoro's neck strained slightly as he pulled himself arm over arm up the rope.

Determined to keep trying, Coby didn't give up. Instead he focused on the climbing. When he reached one hundred and fourty-six, he started to break into a slight panting. Zoro however, was still going strong. Coby marvelled at how relaxed and controlled his opponents body was.

By two hundred and twenty-two, the pink haired teen was sweating, albeit just a coating and a few small drops that ran down the side of his face.

Three-hundred and ten, and he was sweating heavily.

"Three-hundred and eleven." Coby almost whispered as he touched down. "Three-hundred and twelve." He added about a minute later. "Three-hundred and-"

"Finished." Zoro's voice rang out.

Shanks raised an eyebrow in surprise, whereas Coby merely stared, a red rope-burnt hand on his rope, ready to start his next ascent. "W-Wow, Zoro. That's fast." He remarked.

Zoro shrugged, sweat coating him a little in a fine sheen that reflected the lights of the gym. Shanks then nodded and hummed to himself, standing at the side of them room as he dragged Coby with him. "Ok then. Now that you've warmed up, I want you to start the obstacle course, which is not going to be easy. Well, it's easier than the training that Garp will put you through, but...you'll get to that lesson later." He smirked. "Off you go. Start in the left hand corner of the room and work your way down the gym."

He wanted to flat out refuse, but there was a flash of black that caught his eye from the doorway, and he didn't even need to turn to look to know who it was and what they were doing there. So fighting a snarl off of his face, Zoro nodded curtly and complied with the order.

"Try and see how fast you can complete the course. Usually takes agents about under five minutes. You can start when you're ready kid." Shanks called out.

Immediately, Zoro sprinted down the length of a conveyor belt that was set out in front of him. The moment he touched it, the conveyor belt sprang to life, speeding him up even more as it made him hurtle towards what looked like a large brick wall.

Narrowing his eyes which had at first widened in surprise at the speed, he approached the end of the conveyor belt and made a flying leap at the wall, using his initiative and well-muscled body to allow him to perform a handstand on the top of the wall before pushing straight off of it and landing onto the floor behind the wall, hitting the floor with a roll and coming up quickly so that he could start running once more.

This time, he faced a sea of small weeds with a rope dangling above them. Not sure as to what the hell was going on, he decided to go along with it and leapt for the rope as he cleared the weeds. As soon as his hands touched the rope, the weeds burst into flame beneath him and set the very tail of the rope alight. Cursing, he somersaulted off of the rope and landed on the next obstacle; the panel which had just sunk under his weight.

From seemingly all directions, hails of knives threw themselves at him.

To Zoro, it was like he was seeing them come at him in a version that had been speeded up one-hundred times. He put his hand out instinctively, and by chance, he managed to catch the hilt of one of them. Using this, he spun on his heel as he defended his body from the multiple attacks, successfully deflecting them all so that he could move on with the knife clenched between his teeth.

He gave a muffled yell of surprise as he slipped and fell on the ice that had been expertly concealed on the floor of the gym. He started to slide at an alarmingly fast rate, and he would have wasted time had he not wrenched the knife from his mouth and plunged it into the ice, thankfully not shattering the blade. From there, he quickly but carefully stood and made his way off of the ice.

There was one obstacle left, and he narrowed his eyes at it as the two metal doors started to close. Taking a breath, he flat out sprinted for the doors, watching as the gap between them began to close.

Coby watched as Zoro ran, his mouth slowly beginning to drop. "He's never gonna make it." He laughed breathlessly. Shanks didn't reply, instead he merely raised an eyebrow so that the scars over his eye twitched in what almost looked like amusement.

Feeling the world around him slow down slightly, Zoro counted his strides as he approached the narrowing gap between the doors, which was now just about wide enough to fit a person and a half.

_One...two...three...four...five!_

On the fifth count, he dived. His whole body seemed to flatten itself, and as he sailed through the gap and out the other side of the doors, they closed. Time seemed to then catch up to him as he hit the floor allowing him to perform a forward roll into a 'ready-to-attack' position.

Coby then raced up to him with Shanks in tow. "That was awesome Zoro-san!" He exclaimed. "You were all like; 'Whoosh!' and-"

"Cut it out with the Zoro-san." Zoro snapped irritably. Suddenly his attention was drawn by the figure in black as their cape moved slightly. He watched in shock as Mihawk stared at him for a moment before nodding impassively and turning on his heel, disappearing from view.

"Seems like you impressed someone else too." Coby commented, having followed Zoro's gaze.

Zoro shook his head, his lips curling in distaste. "That wasn't him being impressed. That was more; 'You could do better'." He spat.

"Well, you had a time of five minutes and eleven seconds, so that's not bad at all for a first attempt. Besides, the course is always changing, so you'll get another go at some point." Shanks joined in, nudging Zoro with his arm. "Hey, follow me the both of you. Looks like you could both do with some nourishment before I hand you over to Yassop and Benn. You guys look ready for some food, ne?"

* * *

Shanks had herded them back to their common room, to where food had been waiting for them. When Coby had asked, he had told them that Benn had brought it down from the canteen. Zoro had once again felt like refusing to eat, but his growling stomach made him swallow the refusal as well as his pride, allowing himself to eat something, no matter where it had come from.

Wolfing the food down in a matter of minutes, Shanks allowed them a twenty minute break in which he left them to themselves. "I'll send Yassop to come in twenty minutes. He'll be teaching you here in your common room."  
"What more is there that you can 'teach' us?" Zoro questioned, miming the inverted commas around 'teach' as he said it. He received no answer apart from the closing of the door as Shanks left.

Coby was staring at him, and it wasn't 'til he challenged him that he stopped. "What are you looking at pink-locks?" He snarled, wiping the remanants of lunch away from around his mouth with his hand.

"Well, you, really. You really don't care about the rules do you?" Coby stuttered. "And my name's Coby."

"No I don't. I have no intention of staying here." Zoro answered shortly.

"There's nowhere else you can go. We brought you in, so you've got to kind of just...settle in. You're lucky really, you were given a second chance-"

"I NEVER WANTED THAT CHANCE." Zoro roared, making Coby jump back slightly at the force of it. "If you guys had just left it alone, left me alone, I could be doing what I normally do and looking after my half of London. Y'hear me?"

Coby nodded. After a short silence, he spoke up again. "Zoro-san...What's it like? Living on the streets? Owning half of London, as you call it?" He asked timidly.

Staring at him hard, Zoro replied a little more quietly. "It's not an ideal life for everyone." He admitted. "I survived by maintaining the bonds I have with those in my territory. It's about who you know. You don't...control people. It's more about having a reputation that makes them want your protection."

Processing the information, Coby asked another question. "And you said you had a gang? Right? You were the leader of the...Mugiwara gang?"

"Aa." Zoro nodded. "They're my friends, and they trusted me. When chased by your lot, they trusted me to lead them to safety, or to fight our way out of a situation. They're safe, because I led you away from them." He muttered.

"But then-"

"Shut up now." Zoro growled, clearly stating that he didn't want to say any more on the subject.

Some time later, a slightly tanned man walked into the room with a smile, his hair in brown dreadlocks and his forehead covered by a bandana. "Hey there guys. The name's Yassop, and I'll be helping you with your sharpshooter training. In short terms, how to handle a gun."

For a second, Zoro was stunned into silence as he looked at the man. "Ussop?" He muttered disbelievingly.

Yassop turned to look at him sharply. "What did you say?" He demanded, his stare intent.

"Nothing." Zoro replied coolly, mentally cursing himself for his mistake. "Anyway, why are you going to teach us about guns? I use swords. There's absolutely no point in trying to teach me about something that I'm never going to use."

Yassop laughed. "Kid, you never know what you might need to use on a mission. If you can use any and every weapon available, then you are safe in almost any situation that requires you to fight. Hearin' me?"

"So what guns are you going to teach us about?" Coby questioned eagerly, sitting upright in his chair.

"Woah there Coby," Yassop grinned, "you're not actually going to be handling any guns today. Once I've taught you the basics, then I'll let you have a go at actually testing out what you've learnt. Then I'll take you down to the firing range to see how you handle aiming and shooting at different targets."

"But what guns are you going to let us use, or learn about?" Coby asked, the eager light still in his eyes.

"To start with, you'll be learning and using about the easy hand-guns. Pistols and such-like. When I deem that you're both ready, then I'll let you into the big-boy stuff like AK-47's and the sniper rifles, machine guns, and the rest. If you're more suited to long range or canon-like firing, then by the end of the course you could be assigned something like the Harkonnan. Whereas if you're more suited to the hand-held guns, then perhaps something light but powerful enough to shoot someone's head off." Yassop explained.

At this, even Zoro sounded a little interested. But being a swordsman, he couldn't really find the appeal of guns. So when Yassop began the session and started to show them the different parts of a simple Walther P99 pistol.

"The Walther P99 pistol. Every agent starts out with it, and it's the standard pistol. It has a capacity of 16, so it can fire 16 round before you have to reload. It has quite a large magazine. It also has a standard silencer that you can attatch to it if you're on a stealth mission, which helps to quiet the shots, as you can evidently tell from the name. Also, take note of this, it's better at close distance rather than long distance. More damage is inflicted at close range." Yassop explained as he showed them both different pictures of the gun.

"Ok, so how do you reload?" Coby questioned.

Yassop nodded. "That's a good question kid. Y'see that hand grip? You've gotta unclip it and slide out that magazine as quickly as you can, and reload the new magazine into it, but making sure that the magazine clicks back into place. You get me?"

Coby nodded with a grin. "Yeah, sounds easy enough."

"What about you Zoro? Y'get that?"

Zoro nodded once. "Mm. I got it." He agreed un-enthusiastically. Although his outward appearance appeared disinterested, he was making important mental notes in an attempt to remember it. Even though he was not planning on staying in this place for long, he knew it would be better if he committed the important stuff to memory just in case he ever had to use it when he got out of there.

From then, Yassop passed the rest of the hour and a half trying to teach them how to assemble and disassemble the gun by using various different pictures so that they could try and remember it, to be able to use the information when they came round to actually doing it. He would have gone over his time-limit too, had it not been for the familiar presence of Benn entering the room. "Oi, Yassop. You're getting too deep into your subject again." His deep gravel-like voice said, cutting Yassop off from explaining the similar techniques for the Smith and Wesson model of the Wolfe.44.

"Eh? Yikes, you're right! Sorry about that Benn." Yassop laughed, rubbing the back of his neck as he started to gather up his props.

"S'alright. I came about two minutes early. Thought you might forget." Benn said shortly, a smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. "Besides, they've had a long enough rest. Time for some proper fighting."

Yassop grinned back at him. "You gonna spar with them?" He asked.

"Only to assess their abilities." Benn nodded.

Zoro resisted from raising an eyebrow as Benn took them both out of Yassop's care and back towards the gym that they had been in earlier with Shanks, of which the previous props had been removed.

Benn stopped in the middle of the gym and turned to face them both. "Right. Both of you, attack me." He stated.

Needing no further encouragement, Zoro leapt at Benn with a raised fist, intending to strike him in the face. However, Benn gripped his fist with his own and threw him over his shoulder like he was nothing. Getting straight back up, Zoro kicked out at Benn's legs, hoping to catch him out. Once again, Benn seemed to anticipate it. He sidestepped the kick and kickied Zoro's stomach in return, sending him flying across the gym until he landed and skidded across the wooden floor.

Coby then seized his chance and ran at Benn. Instead of giving Coby a chance to attack, Benn aimed for Coby's chest plate and lashed out with a punch. At the last second, Coby ducked under the punch with a limbo-like move and brought his own fist up in the hopes of connecting it with Benn's jaw. It would have worked, had pain not suddenly blossomed in his stomach from where Benn shoved a knee hard into it. Coby fell to the floor, gasping in pain as he tried to regain the breath that had been taken from him.

A flash of green warned Benn of Zoro's approach, but he hadn't taken more than two steps and Zoro had taken a flying leap over Benn's attempted punch to Zoro's abdomen, instead wrapping his legs around Benn's neck and using his own body weight to swing the older man to the floor.

But Benn swiftly came up again, knocking Zoro over so that fell on top of Coby. They both shoved at each other, trying to get the other out of their way.

"Stop." Benn commanded, calling a halt to their struggle. "You both failed that miserably."

"I thought it was a pretty damn good attempt." Zoro grouched.

"Yes, but had you worked together, you would have stood more of a chance." Benn responded.

Zoro snorted as he shot a contemptuous look in Coby's direction. "There's only one group of people that I would work together with. And he's not one of them."

Benn sighed to himself and lit a cigar that he seemingly pulled out of nowhere. "Then this is gonna be one hell of a long lesson."

* * *

_**Points to anyone who got the Sherlock line (Hint; It's from The Great Game). ;D**_  
_**Kai, XxxXxxX**_


	5. Chapter 5

**_Chapter 5._**

**_Wow! I'm on a roll guys! XD _**  
**_Thank you SOOO much for reviewing, because it really made me want to write more! =L_**

**_To any who are wondering, there is no Yaoi. Sorry 'bout that._**

**_Hope you enjoy, because I kind of like this chapter. And yes, I kind of stole the Cirque de Freak series idea with Garp's stuff, but SHHHH. Tell nobody. It was awesome to write._**

**_Ehehehe, xD_**

**_Oh, and a reviewer (can't remember who, sorry) asked about when you're going to see Robin. Well I'm gonna give a pretty good estimate and say either chapter 7 or 8, I haven't decided yet. But if I update as quickly as this, then pretty soon is the answer. ^-^_**

* * *

After Benn's hand-to-hand combat training, with the result of Zoro point-blank refusing to work alongside Coby, the two trainees found themselves hurting all over from having been thrown around the gym and hit continuously. Separately, they had been able to put up a good fight for approximately just under a minute.

But Benn knew that if they would just work together, they would have stood a much greater chance of beating him. After two hours of him drilling techniques into them, a few of them sneakily so that they had HAD to try and help each other a little (if only a little unwillingly and spontaneously), Benn called a halt to the lesson.

"You're good. Both of you." Benn said in his short way of speaking. "But if you're going to stand a chance of fighting for more than five minutes, you're going to need to work together. On a mission, you will have a team. You need to work in that team to complete the mission. If one fails, you all fail."

"You're making it sound like you're the musketeers or something." Zoro stated, unimpressed.

"If that's what you understand it as, fine. I understand that some brains are a little narrow-minded compared to others, but as long as you get the idea, that's fine by me." Benn responded calmly, making Zoro grit his teeth angrily at the jibe. "Anyway-"

"Benn! Let me take them off your hands for now. Garp's already chosen his first task for them." A voice called out from the doorway.

Looking over to the voice, the three of them turned to see a tall yet slim man with grey/white hair and a beard to match. His grin and his eyes held a spark of mischief in them, and one of his eyes had a long line of a scar that was unmistakable even through his round glasses.

The combat teacher nodded to him once. "Rayleigh." He acknowledged. "They're all yours." With that, he walked out of the gym and clapped the man on the shoulder as he passed him.

Coby stared at the newcomer, but it was Zoro who was more intrigued. He recognised the man, and from the way that Rayleigh stared back, he knew it too. "H-how did you-" Coby stuttered.

"Long story, and I don't have the time for stories right now. Besides, one way or another I'm sure you both know what happened. The tale's famous after all." He laughed, his laugh open and carefree.

It was this that made Zoro relax unintentionally. There was something about Rayleigh that seemed familiar to him. As though he wasn't from MI5. Rayleigh noticed him relaxing and smiled to himself as he lead them both out of the gym and back down the winding corridors that never seemed to end. "Look like you're both settling in." He commented.

Coby agreed eagerly, whereas Zoro merely snorted under his breath, which he noticed seemed to amuse Rayleigh greatly. "Anyway, I was sent to give you a quick talk as to what you will be training for. What you will be doing once you have become a fully recognised agent of MI5." Rayleigh continued, seeming to finally get down to business as he slowed the group down to a leisurely stroll. "Your main job, is to protect the royal family. To accompany them on trips away from the palace, to stay with them inside the palace and so on and so forth. If it is not your shift, then you will most likely be called out on a mission, or to generally act as the secret police and clear up the streets. Depending on what's going on that is. If there's nothing really happening, and you've not been called on a mission or are protecting the royal family, then you will have time to yourself in which to relax in the common room or sleep or eat or...you get my drift. The time would be your own."

"I can't wait to get started! Do you know to whom we'll be assigned?" Coby questioned, almost bouncing in his walk with excitement.

Rayleigh shook his head. "Not yet I don't, you'll find out when we do. Besides, Mihawk will sort that out at the end of your training."

"Is there a big test at the end of the training?"

"Maybe." Rayleigh replied evasively. "Maybe not."

Coby pouted at the response, making Rayleigh laugh as he finally drew to halt and started to open the door to his left. "Spoilers kid, spoil-"

"FINALLY." A joyous roar interrupted him, coming a from a large bulldog of a man with short grey hair and a somewhat insane grin. "SILVERS RAYLEIGH!"

Zoro felt an electric shock shiver down every single one of his nerves as he heard the name. '_Silvers Rayleigh? That's..impossible_.'

"Ah, Monkey D. Garp. Sorry for taking so long to get here. Mihawk told me to inform them on what they will be doing once we've trained them up fully." Rayleigh apologised, seeming not to notice (or at least pretending not to) Zoro's reaction.

"Quite alright, quite alright." Garp replied, his booming laugh making the three wince. Zoro then realised that Monkey D. Garp was a name that he had also heard of before. '_Great. Now I'm being tutored by Ace and Luffy's grandfather. Fucking great._' He sighed mentally.

The corners of his lips lifting slightly, Rayleigh bowed a little before turning towards the door. "I take my leave." He stated.

"Sorry for taking the territory." Zoro muttered in an undertone as Rayleigh swept past him to go out of the door. The pause was for barely two seconds as Rayleigh was surprised by the words that had left Zoro's mouth, but he continued out of the door. Zoro smirked to himself as he heard Rayleigh's loud yet delighted laughter echoing down the corridor even after the door had closed.

Garp then clapped his giant hands on both Coby and Zoro's shoulders, making them stumble slightly. "Right boys, you will be with me for the next hour. I hope that you've acquainted yourselves with fire before, because this here mechanism is going to help you both train up your Haki. The perception of anticipating a move. Not only that, it will enhance your senses." He said seriously. "This will be very dangerous, so you're going to have to be alert at all times unless I say otherwise. Understood?"

Coby gulped but nodded vigorously. "Yes sir." He answered. Zoro on the other hand, merely grunted in reluctant acceptance.

"Good!" Garp beamed, clapping his hands together. "I want you both in nothing but these, ok?" He instructed, holding up two pairs of black shorts.

"Not even our boxers?" Coby asked in horror.

Garp rolled his eyes. "Over your boxers Coby. I thought you were a smart lad, really."

"Oh." Coby choked out in embarrassment.

Waiting until they had changed, Garp narrowed his eyes as he noted the boys toned bodies, Zoro's evidently more so. "Right, each of you in these two separate chambers." He ordered, pushing them both into two chambers with what looked liked medium sized holed pipes as the floor under their bare feet. The glass enabled them to see both Garp outside the chambers, and each other through the wall of glass that separated them.

Suddenly, a flame erupted from each corner of both chambers, making the trainees jump to the middle of their rooms in shock. "The aim of these lessons, is survival training. Getting you both used to different situations. This task in particular will be to get you used to the heat of fire, which in turn will help to toughen up your skin. Now," He grinned, "lets see you dance and avoid the fireworks."

Flames erupted to Zoro's left, singing the hairs on his arm a little, making him hiss seeing as he hadn't moved. Glancing out of the corner of his eye, he could see that Coby was concentrating hard, having already suffered a few burns himself going by the look of the faint pink on the inside of his left leg.

Zoro managed to dodge another spout of yellow flame as it burst up in front of him, but it was at that moment that he walked backwards into another wall of unexpected flame that burst up from behind him, lightly scorching his back as he leapt to the side to get out of it. Gingerly he poked at his side, feeling a small case of what felt like sunburn.

A muffled shout from the chamber adjacent to his made him look up to see Coby trying to tell him something. Due to the thickness of the glass, Zoro couldn't hear a word Coby was saying, not that he wanted to anyway. But when Coby easily dodged a tongue of fire to his left, Zoro stared. Deciding to use body language, Coby tugged at his own ear and mouthed one word as clearly as he could.

_'LISTEN_'.

"Listen?" He questioned out loud to himself.

And that was when he heard it. Diagonally to his left, he heard a high pitched hissing of pressure that made him stumble backwards on the hot and sore soles of his feet, allowing him to narrowly miss the column of flame. "Fucking hell." He muttered. "You can actually hear the fucking thing." He ran the palm of his hand over his face for a moment to clear the sweat from it, which almost made him miss the hissing of the pipe behind him.

Columns of fire then started to erupt all around him, the hissing being the only warning as Zoro found himself all but dancing on the balls of his feet, never staying in one place for more than three seconds before having to evade the fire.

He could feel the heat building up in the chamber, and the air around him was getting thinner and thinner. It continued to do so for a long amount of time, and Zoro could not calculate how much time had passed. But thankfully, his skin was somewhat accustomed to the heat surrounding him, having stood next to or fought alongside Ace before.

"How does Ace even keep this around his whole body?" Zoro muttered as he eluded another burst of white hot flame.

Then he missed a very quiet hiss that erupted all around him, making him grit his teeth in pain. There was nowhere that he could run to with out getting burned, as he was encircled in fire. Locking his jaw, he burst through the wall of fire in front of him, the fire licking at his skin and setting the ends of his hair and shorts alight. Out of danger for that precious moment, Zoro used the back of his hands to beat out the flames that clung to his body.

Everything was then scarily quiet. Moments later and he jumped as the door to the chamber opened to reveal a black caped figure, the image swimming in his eyes.

"Zoro." Came the recognisable voice of his father. "Look at me. You're ok. A few bad burns here and there, but they'll heal. Follow me."

Shaking his head, Zoro fell to his knees, trembling with the effort of trying to keep his torso upright, able to feel the burn over his stomach and chest. "It...burns." He croaked out, his throat parched.

"Oh for god's sake boy." Mihawk muttered, his cape flying out behind him as he walked over and helped Zoro up by carefully putting one of Zoro's arm around his shoulders and being mindful of his son's burns, which was rather awkward seeing as Zoro was still a bit smaller than him. "Come with me and we'll have you patched up. It was a valiant effort. I am pleased."

Zoro heard the words, and if it was at all possible, his mind started to feel slightly numb at the unexpected praise from his usually cold father. But that wasn't the only thing on his mind. "I need...need water." He gasped, barely keeping his eyes open as Mihawk walked him into what looked like an infirmary, nodding to Coby who had a bandage on his left leg and shoulder where he too had been burnt, allowing the trainee to stand down from where he had come to attention.

"Yes, that too." Mihaw agreed, allowing a small smirk to tug at the corner of his mouth as he set Zoro on the edge of one of the infirmary beds and grabbed a bandage roll, setting to work on his son's burnt torso.

* * *

Not two days later and Zoro's torso and Coby's shoulder and leg had healed completely. When asked, Shanks had later explained that the bandages had incredible healing properties. That day they had been released back into the regime.

It was a month after such rigorous training in which Zoro made numerous attempts to beat up Coby, each time ending up with a punch to the head from Shanks, that they were both told that the next day they were to be allowed a day's break.

Leaving Coby to wander back to his bedroom with a delighted sigh once Shanks had departed from giving them the news that evening, Zoro collapsed into what he had dubbed 'his chair' in the common room. The one in front of the fire that he had once or twice dug his nails into the arm of when he was annoyed with something. Usually the tutor agents. Or Coby.

"What. The hell. Am I still doing here?" He questioned under his breath in irritation. "A fucking month. I should have left by now. I've..I've left the guys for a month. What the hell am I doing?" Sighing in helplessness, he put his hands over his face and rubbed it tiredly. "But I can't leave. If I try to, they'll try and find me. And that puts them in danger."

He was silent for a few moments. "Unless...Unless I only leave for the day, tell them the situation, grab my katanas and then come back. Tell them that I'll break out for good soon." He concluded.

Confident with his plan, he stood and went to his own room to quickly change into his old clothes which he had successfully managed to keep at the bottom of his drawers. Taking his room keys, he locked his bedroom door and headed back into the common room. The keys were then placed into the mouth of the stone snake that lined the edge of the top of the fireplace.

From there, he kept his head down as he strode purposefully down the corridors of the MI5 base, following his nose as he headed for the kitchen. As he was about to turn into another corridor, he heard footsteps about half a corridor behind him. Determined to get out, he sped up a little and reached his destination, pushing the door to the empty kitchen open a little hastily and closing it behind him. Looking around him, he spied the window directly opposite the cooker and hurried over to it climbing up onto the worktop and unlatching the window, heaving the metal window open as quickly as he could by sliding it along to the right to reveal where the window met the cobbled pavement of the outside world of London.

Glancing back at the door, he froze as he saw Rayleigh walk past the door slowly, looking inside. In the same moment, he caught Zoro's eye and stared at him through his glasses. But he didn't say anything. Nor did he open the door. Instead, he winked at Zoro and carried on down the corridor as though nothing had happened.

Baffled, yet thankful that Rayleigh had not raised the alarm, he escaped through the window and rolled out onto the cobbled pavement. He scratched a small X onto the wall beside the window with a sharp loose stone that he found so that he could find it again when he came back, and wasted no time in hurrying away from the building.

After approximately an hour, he managed to find his way into his territory. The area of London that he knew as well as he knew the back of his hand. Jogging lightly through the drizzle of rain that was now starting to coat London, he arrived at the warehouse. The moment he saw it relief flooded through his whole body, and upon silently entering the warehouse, he relaxed all of his previously tensed muscles.

Looking around at all the pieces of weird metal and shelving and random bits and pieces in the warehouse, he noticed a small slip of paper had been concealed inside an obviously open safe. Walking up to it, he took the piece of paper and read the untidy scrawl written on it.

'_Zoro, if you find this, where the hell are you? _  
_At least give us a clue!_  
_-Ace._  
_P.S; Luffy keeps eating all the meat, so we're going to need to get money in to buy more. Or at least buy him a muzzle_.'

Smirking a little, Zoro headed to the vent and began to make the familiar journey on his way down to the Thousand Sunny, having no trouble at all on the ladder even though someone had turned off the lights that usually lit up the way.

Upon landing on the floor of the cavern beneath the warehouse, his smirk grew as he quietly stole up the ladder and onto the ship's deck. He cleared his throat as silently as possible before sucking in a deep breath.

"WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU ALL DONE WITH MY BOOZE? !" Zoro roared at the top of his lungs, causing the cavern to echo around him. He chuckled a little as he heard yelps of surprise followed by thumps on wood, which he could imagine to be his friends either falling out of bed and scrambling up stairs.

Seconds later, and the door leading below decks opened with a bang to reveal them all trying to push past one another, instead having got completely and utterly stuck within the doorway. Until Chopper charged them all from behind in his full reindeer mode before going back to cute little racoon.

Zoro was then enveloped into a group hug that nearly squeezed all the air from his lungs, which made him completely unable to answer the questions that followed at almost one hundred miles per hour.

"ZORO!"

"YOU'RE BACK!"

"Where did you go?"

"What happened?"

"We thought you weren't coming back!"

With a breathless laugh, Zoro managed to make them all release him, giving Luffy a little return hug before letting him go. "Neither did I." He answered. "It's a long story guys, I'm gonna need some sake."

"Before that, I need to give you this." Nami sighed, handing Zoro a five pound note.

"What for?" Zoro asked in confusion, taking a huge swig of the sake that Thatch handed him as they all followed him into the kitchen and sat around the table. Then he noticed the new addition to the group that sat next to him at the table, with bright eyes, a patched top hat with short blonde hair and a grin that showed true happiness despite the chip in one of his teeth. "Wait a minute, you're that kid...Sabo. Right?"

Sabo nodded eagerly. "Yeah, that's me Roronoa Zoro! Managed to get away about three days after the Royals going to France. Came straight here with my trusty iron bar and am ready to join your group for real. Nami's been teaching me navigation and how to lie with a straight face, and Ace and Ussop have taught me to pickpocket properly!" He rushed breathlessly but radiating happiness as he did so.

Zoro stared at him emotionlessly for a moment, and there was a tense silence around the room as Zoro raised a hand and removed Sabo's hat, putting it on the table. There was relief as Zoro merely ruffled Sabo's hair and chuckled. "Good for you kid, you'll do great. Welcome to the family."

"Oi Zoro! What happened to you?" Luffy called out from the far end of the table, looking curiously at his leader. Everyone on the table mirrored Luffy's look in Zoro's direction, clearly wanting to know too.

Sitting back comfortably in his seat, Zoro began to sum up what had happened to him that day. "Well, when you guys all split up, I diverted the attention away from you all and allowed you to escape. Meanwhile I had about ten or more agents on my ass. When I thought I'd given them the slip, I made it up onto the roof of a restaurant and hid inside one of the inactive chimneys." Then he sighed and his lip curled in distaste. "But they found me and knocked my head against a brick wall."

Nami's eyes went wide, as did some of the others. "What happened after that?" She asked quietly.

Stealing a glance at Thatch, he cleared his throat as he started to speak once more. "Well, here's where it gets complicated. I haven't really told you this before. Before I formed this gang with Thatch when we were thirteen, I ran away from home. I didn't want to be who my father wanted me to be, and my mother had already died due to a terrorist attack." He explained. "You guys all know that we've eluded the MI5 for years now. But the main reason I wanted to keep you guys out of harm from them, is because the head of MI5-"

"Isn't that the...Dracule Mihawk? Hawk-Eye Mihawk?" Chopper interrupted hastily.

Zoro nodded. "Yeah, him. Well...He's my father."

Around the table, every jaw aside from Thatch's dropped in shock. "You've got to be joking me." Ace spluttered. "I know that mine and Luffy's grandfather was an agent, but that's...that's a bit-"

"And Ussop's dad is also an agent, isn't he Ussop." Zoro stated, directing it towards his long-nosed friend, who nodded silently. "Well, after my father all but kicked me into next Sunday, he told me that I couldn't go back. So for that past month now, I have been an agent in training at MI5. It was only now that I've been able to make a momentary escape. In about another two hours, I'll have to head back, else they'll realise I've gone. But don't worry. I'll visit it you if and when I can, but I'll come back to you guys for real as soon as I possibly can. Even if I have to kill the bastards."

"Bloody hell..." Thatch exhaled, running a hand around his jawline as he and the others watched Zoro take another gulp of sake.

Luffy then stood up with a grin. "Well, if he's got two hours, I say we party!" He exclaimed, making Ussop, Chopper and Sabo cheer loudly in agreement. Grinning, Thatch grabbed some pots and pans from the cupboards and started to make lots of hot dishes to be served.

Nami grabbed Ace and Zoro's hand and lead them out to the grassy deck of the Sunny, smiling as she grabbed a radio and turned up the volume on a good radio station, starting to dance with Luffy as Chopper and Ussop began to dance and play games with Sabo. Laughing, Ace and Zoro grabbed tankards of sake and began to chug them down as fast as they could.

* * *

Still grinning, Zoro made his way through London that night with his three katanas strapped to his side protectively. He had drank his fill and had won against both Ace and Nami, and the food, music, dancing and general good time that he'd had was the best time he could remember in a while.

The only problem was, he had found the MI5 building, but couldn't find the X that he had scratched next to the window. He spent more than an hour looking for it, and the rain continued to drench him as it got harder and harder, flattening his green hair to his scalp. Sighing in resignation, he made his way to the front of the building and walked in through the gate and into the welcome warmth of the building.

Waiting in the reception area was a man he'd met once in passing, by the name of Kizaru. "Ohhhhhhhh...Aren't we in trouble." Kizaru greeted with a slightly malicious smile.

"Shut up." Zoro snapped, not pleased to be back in the slightest.

Kizaru raised his hands up defensively. "I'm sure you know the way back to your common room." He called after Zoro, who in response growled irritably and picked up the pace as he headed back for his room, drying off as he walked.

Upon reaching the common room, he marched over to the fireplace and groped inside the mouth of the stone snake, scowling when he couldn't find his room keys. "Damn it, I swear..." He mumbled, trying not to get scratched by the snake's stone fangs.

"Looking for these?" A voice interrupted, the jingling of keys sounding menacing in the silence that followed. Turning to look behind him with a sickening feeling, Zoro watched as Shanks got up from where he had been sat comfortably in the armchair by the fire, which made his hair flicker to show all the shades of red that were in his hair and threw slight shadow over his face.

"Yeah." Zoro answered, reaching for his keys. "Thanks for finding them, I thought I'd lost the-"

He was cut off with a yelp as Shanks gripped him by the hair and pulled slightly. "Because you lost them in the rain, presumably. Funny that, seeing as I don't recall Mihawk allowing you back out onto the streets of London." Whilst saying this, Shanks started to drag Zoro out of the common room and down at least three flights of stairs.

"Yeah, ok, I lied." Zoro growled, trying to prise Shanks' fingers off of his hair, which was now starting to ache slightly. "Look I-...Where are we going anyway? The fucking basement or something?"

"The lower basement. I was hoping we wouldn't have to do this, but seeing as you have a day off tomorrow, you'll be able to heal." Shanks responded in a clipped tone.

"Heal?" Zoro asked, starting to feel slightly wary. "What are you-"

They finally entered a small square room with white walls, a cross in the middle with rope hanging from either end of the horizontal beam of wood. Benn was standing in front of it with a leather bag held loosely in his hand.

"I shall make you a deal, Zoro." Shanks sighed, his face clearly showing how much he hated having to do this, wincing as he said it. "You take this punishment, and you shall still be sent out on your first mission at the same time as Coby, of which we were planning after your day off." Zoro stared at him, not quite knowing what was going to happen to him. "I'll even throw in the fact that I won't tell your father." Shanks continued heavily. "But you shall say nothing of it, and shall not emit even the slightest sound during this. Deal?"

Zoro narrowed his eyes slightly, but nodded. "Deal. There's not much other choice really is there."

Shanks shook his head. "No. Not really kid." Then he wordlessly grabbed one of Zoro's wrists at the same time that Benn grabbed Zoro's other wrist. Dragging him over to the wooden cross, they took the pieces of rope and tightly bound his wrists to the beam so that he couldn't move, no matter how much he struggled, which was a lot at first. Moments later and Zoro felt his bellywarmer and katanas being removed, and the back of his shirt was ripped open, completely ruining it.

Standing next to Zoro, Shanks then held up a piece of fabric that he had just ripped off from Zoro's shirt. "Open." He ordered softly. When Zoro made no move to do so, Shanks closed his eyes. "Please." He asked. Giving him a calculating glare, he finally relented and opened his mouth, allowing Shanks to gently press the fabric into his mouth. "Remember to breathe." He advised, patting Zoro's shoulder before leaving Zoro to stare at the wooden pole in front of him.

There was a moment of silence, and then Zoro heard the whistle of something flying through the air. A split second later and he felt pain rip a line across his back, and had it not been for the bit of fabric in his mouth, he would have cried out. More in surprise rather than pain, although the pain was a part of it.

No pauses were in between the lashes, as Zoro counted them in his head, feeling the raw pain burn across his back like the sting of salt water on a cut as it cut away at his skin. By five, he realised that Benn was very good at this.

Too good.

He could feel blood dripping down his back in small rivulets of crimson. At ten he was shaking slightly, glad for the rope that bound his wrists to the beam of wood. Each sharp crack of the whip caused him to writhe and press against the cross a little, salt water only once leaking out a tiny bit from the corner of his eye. Remembering Shanks' advice, he took deep breaths in-between each blow.

The fifteenth was by far the most painful, as it seemed to almost carve the flesh from his bones, driving the punishment home as he threw his head back and bit down as hard as he could on the piece of shirt in his mouth to keep himself from yelling aloud in pain.

Then there was nothing.

No whistling, no sharp cracks of the whip. Instead just the quiet whispering that he could only just make out as Shanks asking Benn to leave them alone. Breathing heavily, Zoro felt the rise and fall of his shoulders, and they too felt heavy. When Shanks undid the knots of the rope that bound him, his arms fell limply to his sides and he himself nearly collapsed now that his support had gone.

The whipping had numbed his mind, so much so that his body could not respond quick enough and had it not been for Shanks grabbing his midriff and holding him upright, he would have fallen. Carefully, Shanks all but dragged him into a small room with a shower-head located inside it.

Taking the shower-head off of its stand, Shanks turned it on and waited until the heat flowed through it before allowing it to run over Zoro's back. The boy flinched, arching his back in pain as he gasped and lurched forwards, resting his head against the wall in front of him as he grimaced.

"Woah there kid, s'alright. You took it well." Shanks reassured him gently, being careful as he washed the blood off of Zoro's back and cleaned the cuts. "Those'll heal tomorrow almost overnight if you bandage them tight tonight and get a good rest tomorrow. I'll ask Coby to bring your breakfast or something."

Zoro smiled lightly and tried to say something, but the water running down his back felt oddly relaxing and he closed his eyes, allowing tiredness to overtake him as the world turned black and sleep overcame him.

* * *

**_Well that was a depressing end of chapter._**

_**Here's something to cheer you up, if you watch Supernatural and Doctor Who that is.**_

_**A take on the Taylor Swift song:**_  
_**She wears short skirts**_  
_**I wear trench coats,**_  
_**She's cheer captain**_  
_**and I AM THE ONE YOU GRIPPED YOU TIGHT AND RAISED YOU FROM PEREDITION**_

_**Also:**_  
_**If weeping angels only move when you're not looking, then nobody has ever seen the way they move… so for all we know, they could skip or twirl or aggressively chicken dance toward a person, just really quickly...**_

_**I know it wasn't as large as the normal chapters, but I wanted to update tonight. ='3**_

_**Kai XxxXxxX**_

_**(P.s; I'll try and update again soon!) ^_^**_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6.**

_**WOO! I'm on FIRE baby!**_  
_***Flaps hands at Ace* **_  
_**Now put it out! I'm burning over here! =L**_

_**HAPPY NEW YEAR! ^^D**_

* * *

When Zoro woke up, his head felt fuzzy. Moaning with sleepiness he sat up, feeling a tight pull across his back and the feel of unfamiliar fabric around his torso. Pulling back the covers, he realised that he was in his night clothes. But it wasn't until he lifted his night shirt that he could see that the upper half of his body had been tightly bandaged.

Then he remembered what had happened, with the result of his fifteen lashes.

Getting out of bed, he smirked to himself. "So worth it." He laughed under his breath. Starting to get changed he started to remove the bandages, only to see a small piece of paper sticking out at him from within one of their layers. Taking it out, he read it.

'Figured you might want to take these off as soon as you get up, but don't do so unless it's 11:00 AM.  
- Shanks'

He shrugged and scrunched the paper up, fistpumping as he accurately threw the paper ball into the bin on the other side of his huge room. Glancing at the clock on his bedside table which read 15:07, he gauged that it was more than time to take the bandages off.

Carefully freeing them from his body, he made a small heap of them on the floor at his feet. Opening the wardrobe to reveal the full length mirror he turned around and looked over his shoulder. He stared at his back, counting the fifteen faint lines that ran across him like words did a page. None of them overlapped, not even by a millimeter.

He stared at them for a while noticing how they were almost faded after only one night, whereas in reality it should have taken about a week or more. "I need sake." He muttered, walking away from the mirror and to the mini-fridge in the corner of the room underneath the TV.

Grabbing a small bottle of sake, he popped the cork and took a light sip to test it. Deeming it ok, he changed into some fresh clothes and started to wander. He didn't really know where he was wandering to, but he was surprised when he found his legs had taken him to the lower basement to where the cross was still stood there in the middle of the white room.

Flinching away from it a little, he walked out of the room and back to the stairs. He was about to go back upstairs and head back to the common room, when he noticed that there was yet another flight of stairs going down. It had a rope across it with a sign saying 'Authorised Personnel Only'.

Shrugging to himself, Zoro took another gulp of sake and headed over to it, easily lifting his leg over the rope with the other following close behind as he then began to make his way down the stairs. It wasn't a very long trip. About twenty steps down and he had dissolved into pitch darkness. Frowning, he went back up and grabbed a lantern and quickly lit it with one of the matches placed on the ledge beside it.

Holding it in front of him as a guide, he went back down, eager to explore. The flame wasn't particuarly bright, but it threw a light into the darkest shadows of the place. With a slow and controlled intake of breath, Zoro could see the emerald green stone slabs the contrasted with the iron wrought bars that turned what could have been a beautiful large emerald room, into a dark prison with hand cuffs on the wall of each cell, as well as a cross much like the one he had faced last night and other such torture equipment.

Sickened by the thought of it all, he turned away, not wanting to go any further into the empty, cold room.

"You." A voice hailed him, making him jump and turn back to look into the shadows. Zoro's eyes widened as he finally got a good look at the man, who raised his head to look at him with a huge rascally grin on his face.

"Gol.D Roger. Luffy's Uncle...Ace's-"

"Father. Yeah, I know who I am kid. The one that all out attacked the head of the MI5 to save my comrades, of which one of them he took in to make into another of his agents." Roger said, sighing heavily as he fiddled with his chains, their rattling echoing around them.

"Rayleigh..." Zoro breathed quietly, feeling a new kind of respect for the guy.

"Is he ok? Is he alive?" Roger asked suddenly, his eyes blazing with a burning need to know. "Tell me boy!" He said dangerously.

Zoro held his hands up defensively. "Y-Yeah, he's good, he's fine. Missing you a bit, I think." He said quickly, watching as Roger breathed a sigh of relief.

"Ahh...good." He exhaled, nodding. "Hey, kid. Sit and talk with me a while. I get lonely down here."

Zoro raised an eyebrow and put the lantern down by his feet, sitting down beside it crossing his legs. "Don't see why I shouldn't talk with guy whose old turf I'd claimed." He shrugged, holding out the bottle of sake through the bars with a grin.

"Ohhhh...So you're the successor of my territory, eh?" Roger chuckled, accepting the sake and choking it back gratefully, wiping his lips on his sleeve contentedly before handing it back. "And what might your name be, young 'un?"

"Zoro. Roronoa Zoro. Gang leader of the Mugiwara's, rivals of the Kali gang. Well...I don't actually know how they're doing right now..." Zoro confessed, wincing slightly and taking a gulp of the sake himself.

"Aha, so you got caught by MI5. Which one did it? What happened? Come on kid, tell me your story from the beginning." Roger invited, a smile grinning at him through the iron bars.

Zoro stared for a second, thinking of how much Roger and Ace were alike, and that Luffy was somewhat similar. "From the beginning? You pretty much started me off. I kind of ran away from home with my three katanas when I was about thirteen, four years ago...and I started pickpocketing...on...on your turf." He said warily, making Roger chuckle.

"Well I knew you back as a pickpocket you little green-haired monkey." The former gang King said with a laugh as Zoro handed him the sake with a wry smile.

"Well, I met Thatch about two years later,and he joined me. It was just the two of us, and we had a base in a little run-down shed that no-one really used, except to store sake during the winter."

"Free booze, what more could you want?"

"S'actly." Zoro grinned. "Thatch wasn't a half bad cook, and we made makeshift beds in the shed, and basically made it into a little home. We'd go out, pickpocket, buy food or stuff for the shed, and Thatch would try to cook. He got pretty good at it actually." Zoro admitted.

"Ussop, had been in the same position as me in a sense...He'd run away a week or two before Thatch found him curled up and shivering in a doorway, some little raccoon thing trying to warm him up by laying on him. Thatch had a little soft spot for the two of them, and brought them to the shed, where we found out that the raccoon was actually a young devil fruit using deer that could transform into a human that wasn't...quite human whose name's Chopper, and the two of 'em joined us to make the group into four about four months after I'd met Thatch."

"About half a year later, a rival small rival gang started to appear, their leader going by the name Sanji. He's a weird blonde guy, about the same age as me, who smokes and has one weird curly eyebrow and is an all round fucker." Zoro spat. "No idea how, but he started to get followers too. A cyborg, a devil fruit user that had allowed him to return from death as a skeleton, a mythical zoan user that can transform into a phoenix, and a few others."

Here he looked at Roger. "Then Ace and Luffy came into the picture about another year or so later I guess it was. Ace saw us on your turf, and tried to defend it. I'm sorry to say this, but I kind of beat your son and nephew up a little bit..." He admitted, suddenly feeling uncomfortable.

"Ehhh, Ace always did have a thing for adventure, Luffy too. I'm sure they probably deserved it one way or another." Roger shrugged, the grin never leaving his face or faltering for even a second, making Zoro smile back in relief.

"Heh, well, they joined us at about the time that you and Rayleigh got caught up in trouble about two years ago. I rememember Tom-san too. That weird fish-dude. He built a ship for us in the basement of the warehouse in the middle of your old turf...And Luffy found it, and he came running to us down in the shed, saying that you and Rayleigh had been taken, Tom-san disappeared into thin air and that there was a freaking ship in the basement. We went to check it out and before you could say anything I'd claimed it as my territory. Luffy gave us the name the Mugiwara's after the name of that strawhat that he never lets out of his sight, and that was it. We became a proper gang in your stead, going over and claiming your territory on that half of London whilst Sanji started to take up his own territory on the other half of London."

Zoro snorted then. "And then some orange haired girl, the youngest out of the group, tried to rob our main base...having not realised that we were inside at the time. After Thatch, Ace and I had given her a piece of our mind, we learnt that she was in the same boat as us, living nowhere, knowing no-one, depending on herself. So we took her in, and our gang hit a grand total of seven. Nowhere near as big as yours was, but hell are we strong. We proved it too, we've been nameless in the news. Always there, but they never knew us, never found us. We stole, threatened, perhaps killed a few idiots that were arrogant enough to try and stand in our way, but we never killed innocents. Apart from a couple, but they were accidents, I swear. Hmmm...We set fire to places, not always intentionally since Ace ate the Mera-Mera fruit..."

Roger abruptly started to laugh loudly at that. "Good kid." He said proudly, making Zoro grin, making a mental note to tell Ace that.

"We accidentally stole two devil fruits from the government. The Mera-Mera fruit, and the Gomu-Gomu fruit. Ace ate the Mera-Mera no Mi, and Luffy the Gomu-Gomu no Mi. I think it's safe to say that there is never a dull day with those two around, that and their constant need for food." Zoro groaned comically.

The sake was handed back to him, and he took a long draught as Roger chuckled. "Sounds like life isn't all that bad, so how did you end up here?" He asked.

Zoro felt the sake go slightly sour in his mouth. "Hn." He grunted. "You say that the head of the MI5 brought you in, right?" He asked dryly, receiving a nod in response.

"Aa, Hawk-Eye Mihawk...Dracule Mihawk." Roger said in a slightly depressed tone of voice.

"The bastard just happens to be my father, and his lackeys caught me about a month or so ago. He freaking kicked my ass and forced me to join the Mi fucking 5." Zoro muttered, taking a swig of the sake grumpily.

"Damn kid, feel sorry for you." Roger sympathised, stroking his moustache.

"Snuck out to see the gang a couple of days ago to check that they were doing ok, and Shanks caught me on the way back. Not a good move. I don't want to have to feel those wounds ever again." Zoro said with a wince, feeling for the nearly healed lines on his back.

Roger grimaced. "Ah...Well, at least you did what you wanted to do." He said leaning back as the chains rattled around him.

Zoro nodded and stood up, taking the lantern with him. "Well, I'll talk to you again soon Roger, perhaps when I've next seen Ace and Luffy." He said, walking over and putting the bottle of sake inside his cell for him, turning and walking away.

"You are full of promise you know. I wish you luck, Roronoa Zoro." Roger called lazily as he closed his eyes, starting to fall asleep as he concluded the session. Zoro said nothing as he continued to walk out of the basement's jail, but if anyone could have seen the wicked grin on his face, it said more than a thousand words.

* * *

The next day, Zoro and Coby were called to a meeting. A meeting with all of the agents of MI5. Coby walked into the meeting room confidently with his head held high, unable to contain his excitement. Whereas Zoro merely walked behind him with his katanas strapped to his waist, which thankfully he'd been allowed to keep.

"FRESH MEAT." One of the agents called with a laugh.

Zoro turned to glare at him but a hand on his shoulder made him stop as he reached for a katana. "Not worth it kid." Shanks advised. "Besides, they'll have you in a flash."

"Damn right we would." Another agent agreed.

Smirking slightly, Shanks nodded to them all. "Guys, why not introduce yourselves to your new fellow agents." He suggested.

"Jozu. Also known around here as Diamond Jozu."

"Whitebeard."

"Silvers Rayleigh."

"GARP!"

"Aokiji. Sorry about knocking your head into the brick wall."

"Benn."

"Yassop!"

"Kizaru~!"

"Kuro...of the cat claws."

"Sengoku."

"Crocodile..."

"Kaku."

Shanks turned to the two new agents and nodded. "Your turn boys."

"C-Coby." Coby introduced himself with a slight bow, making the agents grin and nod at him in greeting as he went to sit down next to them in one of the free seats.

The green-haired teen merely sighed in boredom. "Zoro. Roronoa Zoro."

"We know about Coby, but what about you? What's your history and reason for working at MI5?" Whitebeard, a beast of a man, called out with a deep voice. Zoro shifted uncomfortably under the sudden intense gaze of everyone in the room, who were all evidently curious.

Zoro caught Rayleigh's eye, and the rogue winked at him whilst patting the seat next to him, to which Zoro gladly accepted and sat, making himself comfortable. "Come on kid, tell us how you ended up here." Rayleigh encouraged, giving him a starting point.

"Ok then. I'll put it nice and simple. I shot a paint pellet at a car that was carrying our royalty, so the guy with the funny afro over there and Coby followed me and knocked me out, and brought me back here. Got told off for bad behaviour," He said, making Shanks smirk slightly, "and was recruited into this place to keep me off the streets, by a fucking idiot with a retarded moustache and beard." He shrugged, leaning back in his chair.

A couple of the guys snorted with laughter suddenly, and Coby stared at him in a panic. Rayleigh face-palmed quietly, and that was when Zoro felt the back of his neck tingling, making him feel slightly on edge.

"Care to repeat that, son?" A dangerous voice said from above him.

Zoro screwed his eyes up and his teeth clamped down on his bottom lip, cursing his bad fortune. "Nope." He replied, opening his eyes again and pursing his lips in hatred.

"Good. Now keep a civil tongue in your head, Roronoa." The voice said sharply, cuffing him hard around the ear at the same time. Zoro massaged the spot, glaring as Mihawk moved to the front so that they could all see him, his black cape flying out behind him.

"Fellow agents. The new report has come in, and there has been a slight change to the order of shifts due to our two new agents." Mihawk began, his sharp yellow eyes scannning them all. "Kuro and Kaku, you are both to be removed from the Prince's shift tomorrow. Coby and Zoro, you will be under Garp's orders on your first mission tomorrow afternoon and evening until tomorrow morning, in which you will use what you have learnt and put it into practice. Am I understood?"

Coby saluted and nodded. "Yes sir." He acknowledged.

"Hn." Zoro grunted, inclining his head ever so slightly.

In response, Mihawk's eye twitched a little, but he said nothing. Smirking to himself, Zoro chalked up the scoreboard within his mind to 'Mihawk: 1, Zoro: 1'. Half-closing his eyes, Zoro all but went to sleep during the next half hour of the debriefing, which luckily did not include any more important information that was specifically aimed towards him.

Rayleigh nudged him in the side abruptly, making Zoro's eyes snap open and a hand went to the handle of one of his katanas. "Slow down kid. We just got dismissed, and unless you want to miss your last bit of training, you better hurry up." He smiled.

"Thanks Rayleigh." Zoro nodded, standing up and stretching. "By the way," he called over his shoulder as he started to follow Coby, "you might want to go and visit the King. He's missing you a bit."

Shaking his head with a knowing smile, Rayleigh watched as Zoro left the room. "So he finally found the old rogue. Took him longer than I thought." He muttered to himself.

* * *

"Horses." Zoro deadpanned as the arrived at the stables to the side of the MI5 building. "Do you not go around in cars?"

"Horseback is more convenient. They can get into the alleyways that a car can't, and we don't always like to run all the way across London." Garp replied as they walked into the stables. The stench of horse hit the two trainees like a freight train, and Zoro could feel his eyes watering slightly. "Now most of our horses are highly trained, and the one you choose will be your own, no one elses. They will aid you in most missions and for travel, so choose wisely. Once you have chosen, put your name on a tag and put it next to the horse's stall. Then meet me outside on your horse. I trust you both know how to put a saddle on." Garp explained, turning on his heel and walking off towards one of the stalls.

Coby turned to Zoro in excitement. "Have you ever ridden before?" He asked.

"A long time ago, yes." Zoro answered shortly.

"Ok, good. I'll meet you outside in five!" Coby waved as he darted away.

Zoro rolled his eyes. "That kid needs to stop talking to me." He muttered in annoyance. Deciding that he best get on with it, he wandered down the aisle and glanced into each of the stalls that didn't already have name tags on them. There were gorgeous bays, piebalds, skewbalds, duns and many other coat colours. With the types ranging from Orlov Trotter's to Arab horses and Lipizzaner's. But most of them shied away from him or took no interest whatsoever.

Until he came to a horse right at the end of the stable. Glancing at the black stallion, he noted that it was a Thoroughbred, famously known as the fastest horse breed there was with almost perfect proportions. The stallion stared at him defiantly, weighing the teen up.

Tilting his head to the side in interest, Zoro smirked slightly and stepped forward to meet the horse, who mirrored his movements. He could tell that the horse was quite aggressive and didn't play nice, because the moment he reached his hand up, the his ears flattened to his head and he tried to headbutt him. His smirk grew and he read the name next to the stall. "Balthazar." He read aloud. "S'that your name? Almost as weird as mine." He commented as he wrote his name on a tag and put it alongside Balthazar's.

Reaching for the bolt on the stable door, he held on to it as the horse put it's head down and charged the gate. Holding his ground, Zoro didn't move even an inch. A cloud of dust rose around the door as the horse stopped just in front of him, snorting heavily. "I think you and I are gonna get along just fine." Zoro laughed as he let himself in, pushing the horse back a ways with firm nudges. "Now if you'd let me put a saddle on you, it would be much appreciated."

Taking the saddle off of its hooks, he was surprised when the horse stood patiently and waited as he put it on and buckled the straps perfectly. Not too tight and not too loose so as not to cause the horse any discomfort. The problem came with the bridle. When taking the bridle off of its hook, the horse reared on its hind legs and let out a shrieking whinny of anger.

Zoro grimaced and waited until Balthazar's hooves touched the floor again, in which he wasted no time in grabbing the horse's head and gently stroked his muzzle, whispering soothingly in an attempt to calm him down. As he heard the horse's snorts become less heavy, he slowly managed to slip the bridle on, gently and carefully managing to slip the bit into Balthazar's mouth. "There, see? Not too bad was it?" Zoro grinned. "Now then. Ready for some fun?" He asked.

Checking the stirrups for one last time, Zoro waited a moment before jumping up into the sadle and slipping his other foot into the remaining stirrup. No sooner had he done so, when Balthazar's head went up in surprise and he charged forwards and out of the stall, galloping down the isle with Zoro only just managing to grip at the base of his mane. Bolting out of the stables, he ran straight into the ring that Coby and Garp were already inside with their own horses, both of whom gaped as they watched the event unfold.

Bucking around wildly, Balthazar tried every trick in the book in an attempt to throw his rider, even so much as bodily throwing himself at the wooden fence so that Zoro's leg smashed against it. However, Zoro grit his teeth and held on, waiting.

Eventually, the black stallion ground to a halt, panting and snorting with exertion. He jumped slightly as Zoro patted his neck. "Good boy." He laughed breathlessly, finally managing to take a hold of the reins. Gently pulling at the left rein, he guided Balthazar to stand over next to Garp and Coby.

Finally getting a good look at their horses, he observed that Coby had gone for a more docile horse. His Pinto horse (also known as the paint horse) was was a beautiful skewbald with three black socks to match the colour of its mane and tail. Whereas Garp was sat astride a dappled grey Irish Draught, whose strong build matched that of his rider. "Zoro." Garp started. "I'm not sure that you should have chosen that horse. He has barely been broken in and is extremely tempermen-"

"We chose each other. It was a fair deal in which he tried to block me at every opportunity. His attempts failed." Zoro explained shortly. "Besides, Balthazar is pretty much like me, so I get the feeling that we'll get on alright."

After a pause, Garp nodded. "Well, this here's Barton. He's worked with me ever since I joined MI5. Tell me about your friend there Coby." He ordered.

"Emrys. He's very calm, but has quite strong quarters." Coby reported, getting a better grip on the reins.

Nodding in satisfaction, Garp nodded to the end of the ring. "Y'see those jumps over there? I want you both to go over all five of them. Each of them are different heights and lengths, so I want to see whether you and your horse are able to complete them. They may only be suited to one of them, in which case you will spend the rest of the day working on improving the other. But before that, I want you going over to the field on our right. I want you both to acquaint yourselves with the gaits of your horses in the walk, trot, canter and gallop. Do not push them into a full gallop unless you think you can handle it. Go." Garp instructed, turning to watch them as they nudged Emrys and Balthazar towards the field.

Zoro could feel Balthazar's muscles rippling underneath him, and the thought of the power that the horse had filled him with confidence. He knew that to be able to work with him, they needed to trust each other to the full extent.

Starting at the end of the field, Garp watched as the new agents urged the horses from a controlled walk into a trot back down the length of the field. Zoro felt the way Balthazar moved, getting accustomed to how and when the horse changed, responding to his every move with the correct response. Baltharzar seemed to feel that Zoro was getting through to him, as his ears were not pressed to his head anymore, only flicking back occasionally when he was unsure.

On the turn, Zoro dug his heels in gently and tightened his grip on the reins. Side by side, Balthazar and Emrys seemed to race against one another as they simultaneously broke into a canter, both horses seeming to relax into the new gait. As they turned back at the other end of the field, Zoro urged Balthazar into a gallop.

Here Emeris fell behind a little, as his speed was not quite up to that of Balthazar's. However, as Zoro started to reach Garp at the end of the field and began to pull on the reins a little, Balthazar snorted and tossed his head a little. Zoro could feel Balthazar's muscle tensing underneath him, and he grinned. "You got it Bal." He murmured into the wind.

Just as Coby gently pulled Emrys to a halt Zoro allowed Balthazar to rear and turn on his hind legs, powering forwards with a burst of energy, his powerful muscles bursting from within as he bolted forwards at a full gallop, a speed that Zoro had never felt the likes of before. He laughed from where he was bent slightly over the horse's neck, who reached the end of the field and made a sharp turn back towards the others just to add a final test to his rider, who performed well by just managing to stay in the sadle as the full gallop faded back into a normal gallop and then downgraded into canter, a trot and finally a walk accompanied by the proud toss of the Balthazar's neck, the ends of his mane catching his rider in the face.

"Impressive stamina and strength." Garp commented, having already talked to Coby about Emrys' strengths and weaknesses. "Into the ring with you both. We need to test your jumping skills. I'm still not sure about your choice Roronoa. Still a bit wild."

Zoro grinned and stroked Balthazar's neck as the horse shook his mane again.

* * *

The next day found the three of them saddling up again in black suits outside the front of MI5 before cantering through the streets of London for the short five minutes that it took them to reach the palace. "Tonight," Garp began, his face serious, "there is a royal ball. People from many different countries will be attending the ball. So it's important that you are on an even higher high alert."

Coby and Zoro nodded as they dismounted and handed the reins over to two of the Royal stablehands. Immediately, Balthazar whinnied and reared, only calming down when Zoro quickly hushed him. "Hey, hey, hey. Shh. It's only for a while. Don't cause trouble unless I tell you to. Ok? Good boy." Zoro whispered as he stroked Balthazar's long coal black nose and secretly fed him a sugar cube. Turning back to the other two, he raised an eyebrow at them. "What? Never known how to calm a horse?" He questioned irritably.

"Shut up and follow me." Garp sighed, marching his way into the palace with the two of them hot on his heels.

Zoro rolled his eyes and began to fiddle with his tie. Unable to contain a smile, Coby flicked Zoro's hand. "Leave it alone."

"I don't like it. Someone could god damn choke me with it." He muttered, sending Coby a glare that could have melted metal.

The moment they entered, they could hear the lilting melodies of the orchestra, which became louder as they entered the ball room on the second floor of the palace. The room was magnificent and huge, with a lot of things decorated with gold. People were everywhere, most of them on the dance floor with their partners, twirling graciously through each dance step. All of which Zoro could still remember his father teaching him a long time ago.

Garp then stepped up to a young man with white-ish hair, a black and grey lined suit on with a cigar in his mouth. "Prince Smoker." He said, bowing his head respectively as the prince turned towards him. "We have replaced your guards with two of our new agents for this night. We wished for you to know this."

Without taking the cigar out of his mouth, the prince spoke. "This is fine. As long as they are not complete idiots like the green-haired one seems to be at the moment, and are able to cater to my needs whilst guarding me, then there will not be a problem." He replied arrogantly.

"Of course Sir." Garp nodded. As he turned back to Zoro and Coby, he put a hand on Zoro's arm as he tried to unsheath a katana. "I know. But just don't."

Smoker stood watching the three of them, a smirk on his face. Trying not to show any outward emotion, Zoro stayed at the edge of the room with his hands clasped dutifully behind his back with Coby directly opposite him next to the buffet table.

Instead, Zoro inwardly raged as Smoker continuously aimed jibes towards the agents with his comrades who all laughed raucously. Although he didn't actually want to be an agent, and more than anything wanted to be a gang leader once more, Zoro couldn't help but take offense at some of the jibes. For some unknown reason, it bugged the hell out of him.

As the night wore on, Smoker became even more insufferable. It was then that he realised that Smoker was purposely trying to get him in trouble. At one point, Smoker sauntered over to Zoro with an empty glass. "Find the waiter and pour me some more champagne." He ordered rudely.

Zoro raised an eyebrow. "I'm an agent, not a servant boy." He responded coolly.

"Did you just refuse me?" Smoker asked with a slightly offended laugh, as though he couldn't quite believe it. "I'll have you know I'm the prince. You have to do as I say. Now do as you're told, peasant."

Letting out a controlled breath, Zoro inclined his head a little and delicately took the glass that was still being offered to him. "Of course." He answered icily, turning on his heel and heading for the nearest waiter. "Your royal high-arse." He muttered angrily.

Upon returning, he handed the glass to Smoker, who as soon as the glass was being given to him, dropped it so that the glass smashed on the floor. "Oh!" He cried. "You clumsy idiot! Clean it up and get me another one!"

Inwardly seething, Zoro obeyed, trying not to say or do something that he would have to pay for later. After clearing up all the pieces of broken glass, Zoro fetched the prince another glass of champagne, politely thanking the waiter who gave him a sympathetic glance.

"It's the likes of these peasants that disgust me." Smoker remarked as Zoro departed from giving him the new champagne glass. "Filthy mewling quims. The ones the live on the streets too, they are the scum of the earth-"

Unable to take any more, Zoro turned and launched himself at Smoker and dragged him to the floor amidst the screams of shock around him. As he did so, he saw a knife coming flying out of nowhere straight over their heads which had originally been aimed at Smoker with the intent to kill.

Missing them both by inches, they both stopped wrestling with each other on the floor and stared at the knife which was now embedded in the wall. "That's mother's pure silver!" Smoker gasped in horror, the prince's face one of mortification.

"Oh good. At least you'll be safe against werewolves." Zoro muttered sarcastically.

Smoker glared at him and began to raise his fist, when it was grabbed by Coby who pulled him upright and started to smooth him down with lots of comforting words such as 'we will find whoever threw the knife sir' and 'let me just help you look your best once more sir'. Both of which seemed to work with the added flattery.

Suddenly Zoro felt Garp pulling him up, the both of them searching the crowd for whomever had thrown the knife. Garp looked annoyed for a moment, unable to find the knife thrower. Then he turned to Zoro with a beam. "Good work m'lad! Saved a prince on your first real mission! I'll certainly be able to put this good word in the report later."

Zoro felt unable to say anything, seeing as he was completely and utterly confused. He grabbed Coby's shoulder and leant in. "Who threw the knife?" He questioned.

The blush that appeared on Coby's face was a faint rosey pink. "I don't know." He answered.

"Bullshit. You were in the perfect position to see who did it." Zoro snapped.

Coby grimaced and pulled Zoro's hand off of his shoulder. "Shut up and keep to the job. We've got another two hours yet."

The two hours passed without incident, but as they swapped shifts with the next agents by riding back to the MI5 headquarters, the question buzzed around in Zoro's head like an angry wildcat, wanting to know the answer.

Following Coby to the common room, he matched his step and swiftly followed into Coby's room and slammed the door shut, making his fellow agent jump. "Damn it Coby. I know you know who threw that god damn knife, so you better tell me right now before I rip every single bit of pink hair off of your head." He threatened. "Who threw the fucking knife?"

"It was me! Ok?" Coby hissed wrenching Zoro's hands off of him.

"B-But...What?" Zoro asked in confusion. "Why did you cover for me in front of Garp?"  
"Garp-san would have delivered your arse straight to Mihawk-sama if you'd attacked Smoker. He might be an annoying little douchebag, but unfortunately he's still a prince. We're just lucky that he's the third in line for the throne. Either way, he's royalty, and Mihawk-sama would have had your guts for garters if you'd have harmed even a hair on his head."  
"I still don't get it...Why did you throw the knife?" Zoro asked, still looking as confused as a guineapig.

Coby face-palmed with an annoyed sigh. "Because Garp couldn't see me from where I was standing, and because I threw the knife it made it look like you had saved Smoker instead of attacked him." Coby explained patiently.

Zoro was silent for a second. "Oh." He muttered quietly.

"Get it now?" Coby asked, getting a curt nod in return. "Good." He said shortly, going to the bathroom to wash the sweat from his face and change out of his suit.

The Marimo coughed audiably to clear his throat. "I, uh. I owe you one." He called, making the sound of splashing stop, watching as Coby came back out of the bathroom, holding a towel a short way underneath his dripping wet face.

"Huh?" He asked cleverly.

"I said, uhm...I...Owe you one. Like, a drink or something. I..What I mean is, thanks." Zoro stuttered awkwardly, fumbling for the right words as he ran his hand through his odd green coloured hair.

Coby smirked. "S'alright." He said with a small laugh as he started to head back into the bathroom. "I got your back, friend."

Zoro remembered having those words from Luffy what now seemed to him like years ago. "Yeah..."He agreed absentmindedly. "You too, friend." It felt odd on his tongue, but good simultaneously.

"Well, we get a bit of a lie in tomorrow! We're allowed to sleep until ten!" Coby said, grinning at Zoro in the mirror, who grinned back in relief of the information.

"Ehh? I didn't listen too closely when Garp was talking on the way back. Seriously?"

"Aa, seriously. It's gonna feel great! AND we get to start monitoring the princesses now! I know that Whitebeard, Kizaru and Shanks monitor Queen Hancock, and I'm so excited! I want to help monitor Kaya, she's so sweet, and a lot easier to monitor apparently. Her sister's nice too, but her devil fruit power creeps me out." Coby smiled enthusiastically.

"A princess with a devil fruit power?" Zoro questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, Nico Robin. She ate the Hana Hana no Mi, and can produce any part of her body anywhere...it's kind of creepy, but she's lovely. I get the feeling she's a bit, well..."  
"Well?"

"Badass." Coby finished at long last with a shrug, rubbing his face with the towel, meaning that he didn't see Zoro's interested, wicked grin.

"Sounds perfect." Zoro said with a laugh, heading towards the door. "Meh, I'll be off now then. Gotta get some beauty sleep, ne?"

Coby raised a hand in farewell. "Yeah! See you in the morning! Can you make sure that one of us gets the other up in case I try to sleep overtime?"

"Sure, night pink-locks."  
"Hey! Shut it Marimo!"

"Ehhhh, suck it up."

* * *

_**Ehehehe, yaaaay! Coby and Zoro are finally getting along! **_  
_**Loved writing that scene, SO MUCH. =D**_  
_**I used to be a horse freak ok? Used to go riding, write mini horse stories when I was little, the lot. And I just felt the need to include them somewhere. And if anyone watches Supernatural, I hope you laughed at Balthazar's name coming up. ;D**_

_**If anyone is confused as to who is where and with which gang/group;**_  
_**~MI5 Agents; Mihawk (Head Agent), Shanks (Second in command), Benn, Yassop, Whitebeard, Jozu (Diamond Jozu), Rayleigh, Garp, Aokiji, Kizaru, Kuro, Kaku, Sengoku, Crocodile, Coby.**_  
_**~Zoro's Gang; Zoro (leader), Luffy, Ussop, Chopper, Thatch, Ace, Nami and Sabo. **_  
_**~Rival Gang; Sanji (leader), Franky, Brook, Marco, Buggy, Eustass Kidd, Tashigi, Vivi, Law and Helmeppo.**_  
_**~(Old gang leader of the past that they managed to put in jail- Roger.) **_  
_**~ Royals; Kaya and Robin-Princess sisters. Smoker - Prince. Queen- Boa Hancock. King- Lucci**_

_**Kai XxxXxxX**_  
_**(P.S; Please review guys! Robin will be making an appearance in the next chapter! ;D)**_


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7.**

**_Thank you reviewers! I love you so much for reviewing! ^^3_**

**_The updates aren't going to be as fast anymore, sorry guys, but I'm back to school so I've actually got to do stuff. xD But I'll upload when I can. Ok?_**

**_Rest assured that I will NOT abandon this fic. I love it too much. xD_**

**_Now, on with the chapter._**

**_Which I KNOW you're gonna like. ;D_**

* * *

Stood in Mihawk's office, Coby and Zoro stood side by side. Straight backs and their hands clasped behind them. Mihawk had read the report that Garp had given him, and although he didn't show it he was a little impressed. "It says here that you both acted accordingly in the circumstances of the situation." Mihawk stated, turning his hawk-like yellow eyes on the pair of them who remained silent.

Standing up, Mihawk then signed two pieces of paper which had been lying next to the report before handing them one each. "Due to this, you have succeeded in your first mission and I am therefore obliged to promote you both to the job of guarding the royal princesses." He continued.

"Coby." The boy in question stood to attention as much as he could without bursting with pride. "You are to guard Princess Kaya with Agent Garp and Agent Aokiji."

"Yes sir. Thank you sir." Coby inclined his head in acknowledgement having to bite down on his tongue straight after and keep his hands firmly clasped behind his back so that he didn't yell out in happiness of fist-pump.

Mihawk turned to Zoro. "Zoro. You are to guard Princess Robin with Agent Rayleigh and myself." He said, searching Zoro's face for a reaction as he relayed the information.

Zoro felt two emotions at once. Relief at guarding Princess Robin, but the feeling of dread mixed with hatred that he would have to work with or switch shifts with his father. The only comfort was that we would also be working with Rayleigh, whom he liked a lot more than any of the other agents.

"Sir." He intoned.

Quickly assessing them both whilst they were stood there, Mihawk cleared his throat and nodded. "Coby, you are dismissed." He said, watching as the young agent turned and walked out of the office, the both of them hearing the delighted 'YES' from the other side of the door once it had closed, and the unmistakable sound of Coby then proceeding to skip down the corridor.

There was a brief silence. "Congratulations on your first mission." Mihawk addressed Zoro.

"Thank you." Zoro replied shortly.

"I am pleased with your progress." Mihawk continued. "And so I have decided to pay you wages like the rest of the agents that work here. You have been assigned a bank account, and so when you are paid at the end of each month, the money will go into there."

Zoro raised an eyebrow in interest as Mihawk handed him a small banking card. "And I can use this whenever I need to?" He asked.

"Yes. But for god's sake be sensible with it." The head agent ordered as he sat down at his desk once more. "Dismissed Zoro."

With a shrug, Zoro turned and headed out of the door.

* * *

Late that afternoon Zoro grabbed an apple from the kitchens and meandered his way over to the stables in his black work suit. He had ditched the tie because he didn't like the thought of someone being able to strangle him with it.

As he walked down the stable aisle, he took the time to find the horses of the two agents he was to be working with from now on. The first one he found was Rayleigh's, whose stall was at around about the middle of the stable. The beautiful pure white horse was a Welsh Cob breed, and Zoro quietly reached a hand out, waiting until the horse pricked it's ears forward and nuzzled his hand, allowing him to pat the horse's strong arched neck.

Reading the name off of the plaque at the side of the stall, he wasn't surprised to find that Rayleigh had named the horse after a part of the old London gang that he and Roger used to be a part of. "Jackson. After the Oro Jackson gang." He smiled, admiring the name. "I'll be seeing you again later boy." He called as he left Jackson and moved on, looking for the other name.

He found it right at the end of the stable, directly opposite his own. The dark grey Australian Stock horse seemed to almost glare at him, much like his owner did. The breed was a well rounded horse, known for its great endurance and stamina. Glancing at the name plaque under that of his father's, he read the name out. "Salvatore." Zoro said. "I can tell that he named you."

Salvatore slowly moved forwards so that his head was hanging out of the stall and was mere inches away from Zoro's face. They stared each other down for a moment until the horse suddenly moved and nipped Zoro's ear, barely managing to catch it as Zoro tried to dodge it and yelled out in pain.

"Son of a bitch!" He yelled angrily, massaging his ear with a groan, resisting the urge to draw his katanas and cut the horse into ribbons. "Now I know who my father bitches about me to." He growled.

The horse merely glared at him for a moment before turning back into its stall, much more interested in the hay rather than its master's teenage son.

On the opposite side of the stable aisle, a familiar neigh sounded out. With a grin, Zoro tossed the apple over his shoulder and turned to watch as the black stallion swiftly raised his head and caught the apple in mid-air, crunching his way happily through it. Shaking his head in amusement, he stroked the horse's cheek. "Afternoon to you too Balthazar." Zoro chuckled, opening the stall and leaving it open as he set about putting the saddle and bridle on. "I wonder if you'd be able to help me." He said, speaking quietly.

The horse pricked his ears up and pressed against the door of his stall, seeming to be listening. "I've been given a bank card so that I can get paid at the end of each month. But I'm not going to need it because they cater for us here. So I'm not really seeing the fucking point to it. This is where you come in."

Balthazar flicked one of his ears back to show he was confused and stepped back a little, swallowing the remains of his apple. "I'm not going to make you eat it or anything. Bloody hell, and I thought you were intelligent." Zoro laughed as Balthazar tried to violently head-butt him. "I need you to give me a ride into London. I have friends there who could do with the money. And with the amount they'll receive, they'll be able to get more food and other supplies that they need."

The horse's ears went back a little and his eyes flicked to the stall behind Zoro. He swallowed nervously and nodded as he finished buckling up the bridle. "Yeah I know, but it'll be quick. I'll just say that I wanted to ride out along the streets to get used to being on horseback."

There was a momentary silence. Balthazar then swung his neck round and gave Zoro a hard nudge in the back as he tried to jump into the saddle, making him yell and fall across the saddle on his stomach in a most undignified fashion as the horse broke straight into a canter by bolting out of his stall and across the training field. Zoro managed to swing up into the saddle the right way and put his feet in the stirrups.

"We're going the wrong way!" He shouted. Balthazar didn't listen, and when Zoro tried to use the reins to steer him back the other way, Balthazar ripped the reins out of his hands and headed for the edge of the field. Staring at the edge, Zoro saw the high fence that separated the training field from the streets of London beyond. "You are not thinking of that...are you?" Zoro asked with a resigned feeling of dread.

"Fuck. Fuck. Fuck." He chanted, his voice getting louder as Balthazar picked up a little bit more speed, feeling the horse's muscles start to tense beneath him. "Oh hell." He muttered, gripping the reins tightly and leaning forward as much as he could as Balthazar all but leaped upwards, easily clearing the fence. Leaning backwards as they descended into the street, Zoro gave a slight 'oof' as they landed, Balthazar finally letting Zoro lead him with the reins down the streets, people scattering as they heard the thunder of hooves.

"You never showed that you could jump that high during the training session you little git." Zoro snorted, jokingly slapping the horse's powerful shoulder as they rode.

After approximately two minutes, Zoro spotted a flash of orange that suddenly started running. He stared for a minute as he watched, but then realisation kicked in. "Nami!" He called out. In response, Nami kept running as though her life depended on it. "Damn it all. Balthazar, we need to catch up to that girl." He ordered, digging his heels in firmly so that the horse sprung forwards into a gallop.

Nami was fast, Zoro would give her that, but there was no way she could out-run a thoroughbred. Within less than a minute, Zoro was almost upon her. As Balthazar drew up alongside her, Zoro quickly reached down and grabbed the back of Nami's shirt, pulling her up with a shriek and sitting her safely behind him. "Stop running away from me damn it! I'm trying to help you!" He shouted as she screamed and clung to his waist in terror.

Turning down into a deserted alleyway, Zoro slowed Balthazar to a halt before turning around in the saddle to face her. "Hey, hey!" He calmed her, stopping her from jumping to the floor. "It's me." He reassured her.

Her eyes grew to the size of saucers as she took in his attire. "Z-Zoro?" She questioned in shock. "You're wearing agent uniform...and you are riding a horse."

"Yeah, I got promoted. I'm guarding Princess Robin tonight." He shrugged nonchalantly. "But that's not what I'm here for. I've been given a bank account, but I want you guys to have it." He said, reaching into his jacket pocket and handing the card to her. "I get paid at the end of each month, and from what I've heard, it'll be a pretty big sum. I know you know how to use one of these, so keep it safe at all costs. You'll all need it more than I will."

"Zoro.." Nami breathed, staring at the bank card in her hand as he helped her to the ground.

"I have to go. Stay safe all of you." He concluded, twisting back into the right way on the saddle and taking up the reins.

"Wait! When are you coming back?" She asked quickly, her orange hair flicking out slightly.

He looked away. "I don't know." He answered truthfully. "It's a difficult place to get out of. If I leave, they'll come looking for me. And that puts you guys in danger."

Downcast, Nami nodded. "I understand. I'll tell the others too. Thank you...Try and see us again when you can."

Zoro smiled reassuringly and gently dug his heels in. "Balthazar, we're gonna need to high-tail it back. We're gonna be a bit late." Leaving Nami to head back down the street once out of the alleyway, Balthazar followed Zoro's orders to the letter and galloped down the cobbles, twisting and turning his way back towards the MI5 headquarters.

However, they were met a few streets away from headquarters by the two agents sat astride their own horses. "You're late boy." Mihawk called out as Zoro allowed Balthazar to slow to a walk as they drew up alongside Rayleigh and Jackson.

"Sorry about that. I was out with Balthazar to try and get used to being on horseback. Guess I lost track of time." Zoro replied.

Mihawk narrowed his piercing eyes at him. "I taught you to ride when you were younger. You know how to ride well enough." He accused.

"Yeah, well I've got a troublesome horse and I haven't ridden out on cobbles at speed before. I was getting used to Balthazar so that I can work with him more efficiently." Zoro countered, effectively ending the conversation as they picked up the speed and headed for the palace.

* * *

Having arrived, they dismounted and entered the palace. Following Rayleigh and his father, Zoro tried not to feel quite as awed by the décor of the palace as they ascended the stairs and knocked on a small oak wooden door. There was the sound of a chair being moved followed by the sound of footsteps. The three of them straightened as the door started to open.

"Good evening gentlemen." A female voice greeted them.

However, Zoro was numb to the core with astonishment. The woman in front of him was stunning. There was no other way to put it. Her just longer than shoulder-length raven hair looked like it had been woven with silk, and her smooth skin seemed almost unreal. Zoro quickly looked to the side to prevent himself from staring, instead noticing her light purple kimono that had the royal crest woven on the chest in silver.

"Princess Robin." Mihawk nodded to her respectively. "I-"

"Thank you for your concern Mihawk, but I'm feeling quite bored in the drawing room at the moment. Letters are quite boring to write, so if you'll excuse me, I'm going for a ride." Robin spoke, her voice as charming as possible as she brushed by the three of them.

Pursing his lips, Mihawk opened his mouth to express his opinion that it would be better for her to finish the letters, when Zoro interjected quickly into the conversation. "M'lady, it would not be safe to go alone. I shall go with you." He said formally with a slight bow.

Before Mihawk could say anything, Rayleigh nodded. "I agree, it would be safer if you were to have one of us accompany you." He advised, nudging Mihawk so as to stop him inwardly scowling.

"Indeed." Mihawk managed to say. "Stay close to her Roronoa." He ordered, giving him a slight glare as Robin began to elegantly descend the staircase. He nodded once to show that he'd understood before staying a little behind the princess, inwardly marvelling at her beauty.

They exchanged no words as Robin had her own beautiful white Lipizzaner horse lead out to her by one of the royal stable hands, but as the reins were held out to her by the stable hand, Zoro watched as her face fell the tiniest bit. He frowned, not liking to see her sadness but knowing that he couldn't ask her anything.

"Perhaps half an hour around St. James' park, ok Arwyn?" Robin asked her horse as Zoro helped her to mount side-saddle.

Zoro whistled piercingly, a short note that increased for the half of a second that it lasted. Immediately there was a shout of alarm from within the stable, and the black stallion smugly trotted out of the stable. Smirking, Zoro swung up into the saddle and loosely held the reins in his hands. He was surprised to hear a giggle from Robin's direction, and his smirk grew slightly.

Lightly urging Arwyn on with a click of her tongue, Robin began the walk out from the palace, swaying side to side a little as a result of being on horseback. Zoro followed close behind, but did not relax his guard. The sun was almost set, and the park was peacefully empty and quiet, but that did not mean that it couldn't be dangerous.

"So, you're one of the two new agents." Robin called to him, slowing so that she was riding alongside the swordsman, who was a little stunned at the fact that she was actually trying to make conversation.

"Mm." He answered shortly, keeping his head trained on the path ahead of her.

She smiled slightly. "Roronoa, right?"

"Zoro." He corrected. "Roronoa Zoro."

"Zoro..." She repeated. "I like it. It's a good strong name."

"Thank you ma'am." He replied formally.

At that, Robin pursed her lips slightly in distaste. "Please don't with the ma'am. It's a horrible title. My name is Nico Robin."

Ignoring her reply, he focused on the surroundings. He felt awful, but he knew that he wasn't allowed to make conversation with her. It was not a part of his job. His job was to protect her, not sit around and talk about dresses or the way she looked so naturally beautiful, or how her raven hair shone like starlight under the park lamps-

Zoro mentally shook himself. '_What the hell are you talking about you fucking idiot. She's a princess. Snap out of it_.'

"Well, you know Arwyn here. What's your black beauty over there called?" She asked with interest. Once again, he ignored her, feeling horrible for having to. Robin laughed a little as she watched him battle with himself. "You can talk to me you know. There's no-one else around."

"I'm afraid I'm not allowed to." He responded, his tone betraying how much he was sorry to tell her so.

"Bullshit."

Zoro's head whipped round to look at her then, looking at her with curious amusement. "I thought royals weren't supposed to swear?" He asked.

Robin smiled victoriously. "Oops."

Unable to help himself, Zoro chuckled. "You bad little princess."

"Pretend I'm not. I never get a decent conversation unless it's with Kaya." Robin persuaded, delicately swinging her legs round in the saddle so that she was facing him as she rode. "So, name of your horse?"

"Balthazar. His name's Balthazar."

"He seems like he knows how to be a rebel from the little display earlier. But you know what they say about horses and their owners, they reflect each other."

"Oh really?" Zoro asked, raising an eyebrow as he finally made eye-contact with her.

"Mhm." Robin nodded. "Can I ask, do you have someone else put the saddle on him for you?"

Zoro glanced at her quizzically. "No. But from the sadness you showed earlier, you do." He replied.

"You gathered that, then." Robin smiled. "I knew you were looking at me."

He blushed slightly, quickly defending himself. "E-Eh? No I wasn't. I'm a body guard. You're a..a princess! My job is to keep you safe, and that's that."

"Shame." Robin stated, stroking Arwyn's mane. "Does this mean that you're not going to talk to any more unless it's just you and me." Zoro sent her a pointed glare and indicated towards his clothes. "Right. Agent. Of course..." She nodded. "Do you ever have any fun?"

Zoro sighed. '_This woman is __insistent_.' He thought to himself. "I used to."

"You used to?"

"When I didn't used to be an agent." He explained a little further, his tone flat.

"Tell me about it. Was it a normal life? I want to know what it was like." Robin demanded.

Zoro shook his head. "Maybe another time. I'm not a story teller. You just...be normal and enjoy the ride."

"There might not be another time." Robin pointed out. "And I'm not what I'd call normal."

"Well tough luck then." Zoro shrugged. "And what do you define as not normal about you then? You look normal enough to me."

Without warning, an arm suddenly grew out from his own arm. He let go of the reins as he jerked and yelled out in shock. "What the fuck?!" Just as quickly as it had appeared, it dispersed in an explosion of pointed pink flower petals. Looking back up at the princess, he watched her put her arms down from where they had been crossed upwards against each other with her palms facing themselves. "You're a devil fruit user?" He asked. "I mean, I know you were, it's just...I didn't think it was true."

Robin smiled a little, but it was short lived. "Some people call me the freak princess." She stated calmly.

"What? That's ridiculous. It's just an ability. There's weirder devil fruit users out there for fuck sake." Zoro snapped, annoyed that people would say that about her. In truth, he'd heard it once or twice before on the streets, but he'd never paid much attention to royalty at the time.

"I don't care for it much. It's just a name. Besides, I'm not allowed to use it. It scares my family, and they say that if I were to do it in public it would scare the people." Robin said, resuming stroking Arwyn's silky coat.

As they walked the horses out of St. James' park, Robin smiled at him. "You know, I get the feeling your not like the other agents...and that's why you agreed to accompany me. There's something different about you. I like it. Thank you, Roronoa Zoro."

He raised his eyebrows a little, but he dipped his head in acknowledgement. "Any time m'lady." He answered formally, the both of them falling silent as they entered the royal courtyard.

Mihawk and Rayleigh were stood waiting at the doors, and they watched as both the agent and princess dismounted and walked towards them. "Ma'am, the royal family is awaiting your presence at dinner." Mihawk informed her as the three agents followed the princess inside the palace.

"Thank you Mihawk." Robin responded politely, brushing her hair behind her ear and moving towards the dining hall, to where she could hear the soft music of a string quartet playing to signal that dinner would soon be starting.

"Did you encounter any danger?" Mihawk questioned, addressing to his son.

Zoro turned to him and immediately started talking. "Yes. As we were riding a beast came out from the undergrowth and ran across the path. It could have scared the horses until they bolted, but they didn't. So don't worry about it, it was just a mouse."

Further down the corridor, they heard Robin muffle a giggle into her hand, making both Rayleigh and Zoro fight to contain their smirks. Zoro felt a weight on his shoulder disappear, and it was then that he noticed that she had quite literally had an ear in on their conversation .A vein throbbed slightly in Mihawk's neck. "Silence boy. Your sarcasm is not appreciated, and I will not tolerate it if it heard again." He growled, turning on his heel and heading after the princess.

Rayleigh nudged Zoro's arm as he made to follow Mihawk, and as they caught each other's eye, they grinned at one another and Rayleigh winked. "I thought it was rather good m'self." Rayleigh whispered. "But watch your tongue kid, your dad will have it cut out otherwise."

"That's the fun part." Zoro whispered back with a quiet laugh.

* * *

Day after day, Zoro was called out to the royal palace or royal events in which Robin took part. Sometimes he would be working by himself, which was incredibly rare, and other times it would be just him and Rayleigh or Mihawk, or at others it would be all three of them.

And a day did not go by in which Robin did not try to talk to him. At every opportunity she would try to talk to him or include him.

One day Zoro and Mihawk waited outside her bedroom as she changed for an important dinner on the other side of London, and Robin popped her head out of the door in nothing but her dressing gown and showed them both two dresses.

"Zoro, which dress do you think I should wear?" She asked, an innocent smile playing on her lips. Trying hard not to blush, he ignored her, knowing that his father was staring at him from the other side of the hallway. After a moment's silence, she arched an eyebrow. "I need an answer, else I'll have to go to the dinner naked."

At this Mihawk coughed pointedly. Turning to him, Robin held the dresses out a bit more. "Mihawk, what do you think?" She asked him.

Zoro's mouth twitched in amusement, and he cast his eyes to the floor in an attempt to escape the laughter that bubbled up inside of him. Mihawk was a little surprised, but he hid it quickly by sighing and closing his eyes. "Ma'am. You know that your mother the queen specifically asked that you wear the green one." He replied at length.

"So she did. Well that clears that dilemma." Robin responded, her playfulness gone in an instant as she closed the door once more.

During one of the royal dinners in which Robin was sat next to her sister, princess Kaya, she started a small conversation that went unnoticed as their parents talked about more grown up matters such as the government. "Kaya...Did you have a new agent assigned to you recently?"

Kaya nodded and finished her mouthful before answering, turning her doe-like eyes upon her sister. "Yes, the one with the pink hair over there. I learnt that his name's Coby. He's very sweet. I'm guessing you also have a new agent."

"Yes, the one next to Coby." Robin confirmed.

"The one with green hair?" Kaya asked. "He's very tall..and he looks like he has some of Mihawk's features.." She commented.

At this, Robin raised an eyebrow. "You think they're related?"

"I'm not sure..I'll ask Coby later." Kaya said, delicately shrugging her shoulders. "Why are you so interested in him anyway?"

"I'm not sure." Robin said, sipping at a glass of wine. "I feel drawn to him, like I want to learn more about him." She confessed. She was quiet for a moment. "Maybe I'm attracted to him." She mused bluntly.

"B-But Robin! You can't!" Kaya exclaimed in an undertone.

"Why ever not?"

"We're royal, and we must marry of other royal blood! He's an agent. A com-"

Robin glared at her sister, abruptly silencing her. "Don't say it. I don't want to hear of our people referred to as commoners or peasants." She hissed.

"Dearest sister," Smoker's voice drawled mockingly from the other side of the table, "that is what they are. Peasants, the lot of them."

"Be quiet Smoker." Robin replied, her voice firm and cold.

Smoker lifted the corner of his lips and grinned as he put a cigar in his mouth. "You're quite the commoner lover aren't you? Sometimes I get the feeling that you don't want to be a royal. Not falling for the peasants are you? Falling in love with them? I wouldn't be surprised if you went off one day and married one of the filthy creatures." He scoffed nastily.

Throwing down her dinner handkerchief Robin stood up in her seat in anger, causing all conversations to cease as they stared at her. "And what if I did?" She cried. "I'd have you know that I'd get along with him more than I would any man of royal blood." Silence met this outburst, and Robin clenched her jaw as she left the dinner hall, fleeing to her chambers with angry tears biting at the corners of her eyes.

Coby glanced at Kaya, momentarily catching her eye as she bit her lip. Nudging Zoro with his arm, he subtly nodded towards the doors of the dining hall. Wordlessly, Zoro's jaw lowered into an 'are-you-serious' face.

In response, Zoro's eyes flickered over to Mihawk.

"Just go. Before either he or Rayleigh does. Do you want to protect her or not?" Coby said in a voice less than a whisper.

Zoro glared at him for a second before sighing irritably and swiftly walking out of the royal dining room and out into the corridor. Ascending the staircases with his katanas clinking at his side, he did not stop walking until he arrived at her bedroom door.

Rubbing his face tiredly, he cleared his throat. "My lady?" He called out. "My lady are you ok?"

There was no answer.

Sighing impatiently, he wet his lips and made sure there was no one else listening. "Robin?" He asked, deciding to be a little more informal. "Robin it's me, Zoro."

There was a rustle from within, and the door opened a crack seconds later to reveal her. "What is it?" She asked, her voice level but strained.

"May I come in?"

Nodding, Robin stepped back and opened the door further so as to allow him in. Taking hesitant steps inside, he tried not to notice the purple grandeur of her bedroom. "You left the table rather urgently." He remarked, glancing at her as she closed her eyes momentarily.

"Yes. It seems my brother is a royal pain in the neck." She told him, watching as he snorted a little.

"I think we already knew that, and I would have used worse words to describe your brother."

"Mmm...he is too arrogant, and so set in the lifestyle of royalty that he thinks that anyone beneath us are the scum of the earth."

Zoro laughed softly. "If it wasn't for the 'scum' and 'peasants' he wouldn't be eating so finely. Or off of golden platters." He pointed out.

Robin smiled lightly. "True."

"Is that why you left? Or was there anything else upsetting you?" He asked, his eyes searching her face in slight concern.

She hesitated for a second before shaking her head. "I'm fine kenshi-san." She reassured, offering him a smile that looked a little more real. Robin then stepped forwards and wrapped her arms around him in a hug, showing that he was just that little bit taller than her. Swallowing nervously, Zoro awkwardly returned the hug. "Thank you for caring enough to come and find me." She added.

"Uhh...You're welcome." He replied, trying not to make it sound like a question.

They sprang apart as there was a knock at the door. "My lady?" Mihawk's voice sounded out firmly from the other side of the door.

Zoro calmly bowed to her before turning and walking over to the window as Robin replied with a call of 'One moment'. Opening the window quietly, he glanced down to see the long way to the bottom. Wasting no time, he manoeuvred himself onto the window ledge before dropping himself over it. "Be careful." Robin whispered, shutting the window as Zoro nodded and began his descent, reaching the ground in under a minute thanks to his harsh training.

As he swiftly walked back into the palace, smoothing himself down as he did so, he walked straight into Rayleigh who had just exited the dining hall. "There y'are kid..Wondered where you'd gone."

"Yes Zoro." Mihawk's voice joined the conversation as he walked up to them. "Where did you go?"

Zoro shrugged. "Went to check on the princess who wouldn't answer me, and I needed to use the royal privy."

Rayleigh smirked and looked away as Mihawk tested the edge of his teeth. "Indeed."

* * *

In the days which followed, Robin felt more and more compelled to talk to her agent, and tried to drop a few hints.

As she was sat reading her book in the library one evening, she finished it and sighed as she replaced it on the shelf, turning to the swordsman.

"Hey, I'm bored." She stated. "Let's have dinner."

Or at the end of the day after having given a speech to the people because her mother had been called away on urgent business, she entered the palace with Zoro and Rayleigh following behind her and she called over her shoulder to him.

"Successful day today. Come on, let's have dinner."

But there was one day in which Zoro was told by both Shanks and Mihawk to dress as smartly as he could. And he did, but he still refused the tie. It was that night that he learnt that the palace was holding a royal ball, in which the royal families from many other countries would come to partake in the dances, music and dinner that was to be arranged.

Not only that, but so that the royal princes from afar could get a look at the princesses so that they could present themselves to her in the hope that one day when they came to marry, they would be asked for their hand in marriage.

Coby and Zoro stood alongside Rayleigh and Shanks, sometimes walking through the room like a wall as they combed through the crowd of royals, checking for signs of trouble. However, there was a slight pause in the room, and people stopped talking and turned to look as the British Royal family made their way into the ballroom.

Queen Boa Hancock was clad in a beautiful cherry red dress with patterned gold, and she was lead in on her husband's arm. King Lucci was dressed in an incredibly smart black suit, with medals pinned to the front much like the kings of other countries who had assembled to the gathering.

Princess Kaya was lead in on Smoker's arm, the both of them aptly dressed for the occasion Smoker matching his father but with a few less medals, and Kaya in a kimono of the palest pink which made her seem as delicate as a daisy in the spring.

But the last to enter, made Zoro's breath catch in his throat.

He was now able to see the rings of purple in her eyes, brought out by the flowing, full-length deep indigo ball gown that she wore. The two straps on the dress allowed a small amount of her cleavage, but they pulled up into a halter-neck Her beautiful raven hair had been lightly curled, and two small bits of her fringe had been plaited at either side and brought round to join with a mother of pearl clip in the shape of a butterfly at the back.

"She's stunning..." Zoro breathed quietly to his fellow agents, all of whom grinned at one another without him noticing.

The ball resumed, with the royal families greeting one another. Nico Robin, wandered gracefully through the crowd, graciously smiling at those who introduced themselves, murmuring a reply of 'nice to meet you' or other such phrases.

Finally reaching Zoro, she smiled at him almost seductively. "Good evening." She said, her smile growing slightly. "So I'm a princess and you're a normal guy...Let's have dinner."

Shanks raised his eyebrows, whereas Coby's mouth nearly dropped in shock.

Zoro allowed the corner of his lips to quirk up in amusement. "That has to be at least the fourty-second time that you've asked me this." He told her, giving her a pointed stare.

Biting the inside of her bottom lip momentarily, Robin laughed quietly. "Obviously I'm not trying hard enough." She concluded. Zoro didn't reply, merely watched her as she was the first to take to the ballroom's dancefloor in the center of the gigantic room.

Signalling to the orchestra by holding up three of her fingers, they nodded to her and started to flip the pages on their music stands. All around her, prince's began to cry out as they asked for her hand in the dance. Politely, she refused them all until there was a silence.

"What is she doing? Why hasn't the music started yet?" Coby questioned.

Shanks glanced at him. "The orchestra is not allowed to start until Robin has taken a partner." He explained.

Suddenly, Robin turned towards them and directly looked at Zoro, holding her hand out towards him. Zoro's eyes widened at her boldness and stayed rooted to the spot, trying to think of how to get out of the situation.

"Get out there boy." Rayleigh laughed quietly as he watched Coby silently remove Zoro's katanas. Grinning a sly grin, Rayleigh abruptly pushed Zoro forwards so that the swordsman stopped just in front of the princess, having nearly walked straight into her.

Looking straight into her face, he watched as Robin's lips twitched into a mischievous smirk.

Zoro stared at her warningly, but she took no heed as she curtseyed to him, making him have no choice but to bow to her in return as he heard the first lilting notes of the beginning of the Tarantella, complicated dance that he had been taught a long, long time ago.

The dance began.

Like the rolling waves of the sea the two of them were carried by the pulsing, sweeping melody of the opening of the song. Round and back, falling into each other's arms, and allowing themselves to be tossed away again, like leaves in the strong autumn wind.

Mihawk stood transfixed, watching in complete stillness. His body straining, mouth open and frozen in curiosity, anger and anticipation of the dancers moves, and he watched them in each unfolding beat as the song progressed.

As for the dancers themselves, they were possessed. Zoro no longer thought of the secrets of the steps that he had been taught long ago, or of guiding and leading his partner. Neither of them led, they flew together in the only way possible, the way the music commanded and they let their bodies decide. Away and round, reaching but not yet touching, and away and back, spinning into each others arms.

So lightly, barely brushing as they met before passing and leaping, down on one foot and then the spin, the turn, the clasp.

Robin danced as if after this dance her life would end, as if nothing, and no one existed but this man, this music. He was her dance partner, her guardian...and her in her own mind, her lover. For as the dance lasted, they were two bodies become one.

She felt his strong arms around her as she fell back, confident that he would not let her fall, and felt his beating heart as she rose again and felt her breast pressed against his chest. She spread her arms wide and he lifted her, and she was dropped again to the ground, feeling almost weightless.

And together within the same heartbeat, they exploded into free flight. One mind, one song, two bodies in motion. Pushing through into total abandon, together in a dance that was one, folding embrace.

In this state of grace, Robin knew there were no rules. No limits. Her body could do anything because everything it did was beautiful in its own right. So smiling, glowing and beautiful, she headed towards the climax with him.

Without conscious thought, they both slipped into the rise, parting, hands rose, meeting to the merest fingertip touch, parting again in an accelerating rhythm. With each re-touch they came closer together, but by no more than an inch, and their touching hands rose higher. With each parting they spun farther away from each other, so that as they built up to the climax they were hurtling away and throwing themselves back into an almost embrace, closer and closer, arms higher, higher. Arms high above them, face to face, chest to chest, and barely touching with the everyone around them hardly daring to breathe as they waited for the final move.

Robin twisted around as they came back together and fell into the last embrace, feeling like she weighed nothing as Zoro's strong and muscled arms wrapped around her and held her steady mere inches from the floor.

The whole ballroom was silent for a few seconds, taking it all in as they watched Zoro helped Robin upright, both of them panting slightly from the quick movements of the exhilarating dance. Taking Robin's hand, he bowed and kissed it to end the dance.

The room burst into applause, and moments later the orchestra struck up a new tune, allowing more couples to start the famous Tchaikovsky's Waltz. Meanwhile, Zoro lightly took Robin's hand and lead her off of the ballroom dance floor.

"What the hell was that?" He asked in an undertone as they rejoined Rayleigh and Coby.

"I do believe it's defined as 'fun'." Robin replied. "Thank you very much for the dance kind sir. Will you be joining us for dinner?"

Zoro sighed impatiently. "My lady, you know I can't."

Robin let her eyes roam his face for a moment. "And here I thought you were the adventurous type. The one that didn't care about the rules."

"I don't. But I don't want to get you into trouble, which will most certainly happen if this continues."

"Me in trouble? What about you?"

"I'm already in trouble. It's you I'm worrying about."

"How kind of you."

"You're welcome."

"Indeed."

There was a moments pause.

"Zoro, when can I dance with you again?"

"You can't."

"Why not?"

"My dance card is full."

"With whom?"

"Rayleigh." Zoro replied straight-faced. "He's been wanting to dance with me for ages, and I promised him a full night in his best ballroom dancing shoes so-" He was cut off as a laughing Rayleigh smacked him upside the head. "My lady...You understand my meaning."

Robin nodded. "Unfortunately so."

The ringing of a bell caught the hall's attention as a man with a tall white hat on stood in the entrance to the ballroom. "Dinner, is served." He called, finally clicking in Zoro's mind as the palace's head chef.

'Not a patch on Thatch.' He thought with a smile as he, Mihawk and Rayleigh followed Robin through to the royal dining hall.

A great long table had been set up, winding like a snake throughout the hall so that it would make room for everyone. As the royal families weaved amongst one another in the attempts to find their assigned places, Zoro's eyes suddenly widened as he saw a blonde, weirdly pale man with piercing blue eyes remove a bone handle knife from his jacket. Zoro cursed as he realised that Coby had his katanas and watched as the knife was aimed at his princess.

"NO." Zoro yelled, diving in front of Robin just as the knife was thrown.

There was a sickening thud as the knife embedded itself in the back of Zoro's right shoulder. Refusing to move, there was a scream from the surrounding royals as they saw the shoulder of Zoro's suit start to deepen with blood. Groaning in pain, Zoro lifted his head and watched as Rayleigh and Garp raced across the room with a speed Zoro had never seen the likes of before and tackled the attacker to the ground, swiftly knocking him out and placing seastone shackles around his wrists.

The dinner was swiftly cancelled and people were asked to head back to their rooms as Mihawk started to order the agents to check for any traps or anything that could endanger anyone.

Meanwhile, Zoro felt the hand of his good arm being grabbed, and moments later he was being raced up the stairs and into a large purple room. It took him a minute to realise that Robin had just pulled him into her room. "Wh-Robin what are you-"

"Hold still." Robin ordered as she crossed her arms in front of her and allowed two arms to grow either side of Zoro's shoulder. "There's a knife in you."

Zoro nearly sweatdropped. "Yeah, thanks for reminding m-OW. JESUS FUCKING CHRIST." He yelled in pain as he felt the knife being ripped out of his shoulder, shredding a little bit of the flesh as he it did so. Then a piece of what felt like a wet flannel was held to his shoulder, pressurising it in an attempt to stop the bleeding. After about two minutes, it was removed.

"There." Robin finalised. "That will keep you until you find some bandages."

"...Thank you." Zoro thanked her, watching as she locked the knife in a drawer for safekeeping.

Robin nodded and disappeared into a separate room for a few minutes, reappearing in her night clothes. Zoro blinked, unsure of what to do. "I would call for the maid, but she's probably freaking out in the kitchens." She explained as slid into her four-poster bed and pulled the covers over her.

Zoro nodded politely, coughing awkwardly to clear his throat. "Sleep well my lady." He said, checking the clock on the wall which told him that his shift was over.

There was no response from the eldest princess, as she was already asleep. Smiling softly to himself, he quietly walked over to her and made sure that she was comfortably tucked in. Wiping a stray strand of hair out of her face, he leant down and kissed her forehead lightly.

"Sleep well. Robin." He whispered, turning and heading out of the door.

Closing it silently behind him, he called two of the palace guards over from where they had been walking down the corridor, ordering for them to guard her door until she woke. Noting that he was an agent, they nodded and stood to attention at either side of her door as Zoro quickly went down the stairs and out of the palace into the night.

Whistling once, he waited until he heard the familiar sound of hooves upon stone. Balthazar nudged Zoro's hand and neighed in greeting. Zoro smiled and put his arm up to pull himself into the saddle, but he shouted in pain and withdrew it to his side as he felt the knife wound open up again. "Shit." He cursed, using his other arm to swing into the saddle. "Go Bal. I've got to get this seen to."

They cantered down the roads, the sound of Balthazar's hooves echoing in the night on the empty streets, the only light being the street lamps that they passed. A second set of echoing hooves joined that of Balthazar's, making Zoro jump slightly as Shanks drew up alongside them on his dark brown Quarterhorse, Castiel.

"Zoro. When we get back to headquarters, I'll patch that shoulder up for you. But you need to rest it, so we're giving you the day off tomorrow. Understood?" He called out, his red hair whipping back in the wind.

"Yes sir." Zoro called back shortly, nodding once.

* * *

**_WE SAW ROBIN. WOO! YEAH!_**

**_Phew...xD_**

**_Longest chapter I've written so far. 7000+ words people!_**

**_I think that deserves a review...Please? =3_**

**_Kai XxxXxxX_**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8.**

_**Yay for the next update! =D**_

_**I know I said updates would be taking a long time, but I needed to give you a couple of cliffhangers before I did so. ;D  
Hope you enjoy the chapter!  
And please review! **_

* * *

The sun was high in the bright blue cloudless sky of London, its warm rays warming every citizen to their bones as they browsed through the stalls that were laid out, selling everything from purses to clothes and even food.

It was here that Ussop was teaching Sabo to bargain, having already got three good deals on materials in which to repair the Thousand Sunny from Luffy and Ace's recent wrestling match. Since Zoro had given Nami the bank card, the group had more than enough money to spend, but due to Nami's careful banking skills, they didn't go spending things rashly.

Just as Ussop finished paying and placed the bag of nails in his satchel, a scream went up followed by the crash of at least two stalls. Sabo gripped his lead pipe as both he and Ussop turned towards the sound. The screams turned into multiple screams as stalls were upturned.

Seeing a flash of bone, a shot of blue fire and the glimpse of blonde hair rising up from the stairs leading to Covent Garden's underground, Ussop started to panic. "Oi, Oi! Sabo, get out of here! Go back to base via Baker Street, make sure no one follows you and get at least three of the others over here. Stay at the base when you get there, go!" He panicked, grabbing Kabuto shoving a bag of pellets into his pocket before hurriedly shoving his satchel over Sabo's shoulders.

"Hey! I can fight!" Sabo protested angrily, gripping his lead pipe even harder as another round of screams went up.

"Not these guys. Not yet. GO!" He yelled, shoving him in the direction of the way back to the base.

With that, Ussop turned and unleashed a smoke pellet at the stalls. As it made impact, the smoke billowed out instantaneously. Seizing his chance, Ussop ran around all of the stalls and ushered people away. "No, no. Leave it!" He ordered when people tried to take their stuff. "You can come back for it afterwards when it's safe. If you want to live, run!"

Once he had managed to evacuate everyone, he turned back to the black figures that were still stumbling around in the smoke with angry curses as they walked into one another. Swallowing nervously, Ussop took aim and fired an explosive pellet into the midst, knowing that once it made impact, the smoke would clear and he would be revealed. "BACK OFF OUR TERRITORY." He yelled bravely with his knees knocking together, watching as he heard Vivi and Tashigi scream in pain as the pellet exploded near them.

The smoke then cleared, and Ussop's eyes widened in horror as he noticed that the entire Kali group minus one was assembled, all of them armed to the teeth. Sanji blew out a puff of his cigarette and gestured towards Ussop with it. "You know, I'd have thought that since the marimo had mysteriously disappeared, his lackeys would have disbanded or quarrelled amongst one another."

"We would never abandon each other. And Zoro hasn't disappeared!" Ussop shouted back, aiming another pellet at Sanji just in case.

Pulling the corner of his lips downwards momentarily, Sanji held his hands out. "Well where is he then?" He asked. "ZORO?" He called out, making his followers start to laugh. "ZORO ARE YOU THERE? WHERE ARE YOU ZORO? HAVE YOU NOTICED I'M TAKING OVER YOUR TERRITORY YET?"

Saying nothing, Ussop gulped and his grip on Kabuto wavered a little.

"Look at you! Still desperately clinging on to what territory you have left." Sanji laughed, taking a step forwards.

"Don't you dare take another step into our territory." Ussop warned.

Sanji raised his curled eyebrow. "What...like this?" He questioned, taking another step forwards. He cursed as the cigarette was shot out of his hands by a hard pellet, grazing his fingers slightly. Sighing in boredom, he lit another cigarette and inhaled for a moment before exhaling the smoke.

Pushing himself up into a handstand, Sanji quickly arched his body over and over again as he travelled across the ground at quite a speed, catching Ussop by surprise as he found Sanji directly infront of him, crouched towards the floor. Moments later Sanji kicked him hard in the gut, sending Ussop flying backwards into one of the jewellery stalls that collapsed under his weight, some of the jewellery breaking and sticking into his bare back like glass.

Snorting contemptuously, Sanji took another drag of his cigarette. "We will take over this city. And there is nothing you can do to stop it you pathetic fucking rat."

Nodding his head to his group, they turned and started walking, smirking and laughing as they heard screams of terror and the slamming of doors echo down the street that they came to first.

Weakly standing up, Ussop fitted an explosive pellet into Kabuto and took careful aim at the clothes lines that hung above the houses. Releasing the pellet, he watched as the clothes line fell and entangled both Kidd and Franky as they fell over. He grinned in victory that was short lived.

Moments later a knife came flying out of Vivi's hand, her aim proving true as it slammed into his chest plate with the force of a bullet. Ussop's breath caught in his throat in shock and pain. His eyes flickered as his grip on Kabuto tightened, listening to Vivi's delighted yell that was enhanced by Sanji's laugh and flirting with her, complimenting her on her good aim.

He collapsed to his knees, the light of the sun dimming in his eyes. Watching as Sanji's gang disappeared down the street he coughed, blood erupting from his throat and splattering the floor. Groaning in pain, he used Kabuto to drag himself over to a nearby section of low wall, leaning his back against it as he struggled to breathe.

About five minutes later, his blurred vision saw people warily coming back out into the wrecked stalls of Covent Garden, salvaging what they could. One of them, a young man, came up to him and knelt beside him. "U-Ussop-san? Why is Sanji here? Wh-Where's Zoro?" He asked.

Painfully, Ussop spoke slowly. "Zoro is away. He will return. Sanji is trying to...claim our area. Don't worry..." He breathed. "Zoro will...Return."

A yell of alarm suddenly sounded out along with the sound of hooves. "USSOP!" Came Chopper's panick-stricken voice. "Ahhhhhh! AAACCEEE! WE NEED A DOCTOR!"

Ace's voice sounded far away as he replied. "Chopper...You are a doctor."

There was a silence. "Oh yeah." Came the response. "Move! Let me attend to him! Please!" Chopper cried, his little doctor bag hitting the pavement beside Ussop.

"Shit." Ace stated as he saw the knife protruding from Ussop's chest plate. "Shit. Shit. SHIT." He cussed, running a hand down his face as he turned away for a moment and then turning back. "Chopper. Please tell me that knife is not close to his heart."

"It isn't." Chopper's slightly relieved voice came back. "But it's lodged in his chestplate and he is losing blood fast. We need to get Thatch. He's the only one with his blood type and Ussop's going to need a blood transfusion. Have you got the den-den mushi?"

"Yeah, right here. I'll tell them that we're coming back and-"

"No, he can't be moved. Do that and he might die even...faster." Chopper reasoned, tears filling his eyes as he trailed off.

"How long will he have?" Ace asked, trying to keep factual about it and not upset Chopper any more.

"About five minutes at the most. If he wants to get here on time he'll need to take the underground from Baker Street." Chopper answered.

Ace nodded as he pulled out the den-den mushi and began making the urgent call back to base. Meanwhile, Chopper was surprised as Ussop lifted his hand and took Chopper's hoof. "It was Vivi..." He gasped.

"Ussop, don't tal-"

"No, Chopper." He coughed obstinately. "Sanji is...taking over the...territory. He's moving further...west."

Chopper's eyes went wide and he stilled in fear at the information. "Wh-Wh-What? Ussop, is he-"

Ussop didn't hear the rest of the question as the world went black.

* * *

As weird as it sounded, Zoro couldn't wait to get back to work. Once his shoulder had healed, Shanks had made him stay in his room for an extra few hours just to make sure that it got a good rest. He'd grumbled about it, but from the look Shanks had given him when he had tried to peek out of the door to room 221, he had sulkily retired to his bed, ending up sleeping through the hours anyway.

So when he was allowed out of his room, he put his three gold earrings in straight away, not caring that Mihawk had repeatedly told him to not wear them.

He'd had nothing important to do, seeing as he wasn't trusted with any paperwork, and he still wasn't allowed outside of headquarters yet which meant that he couldn't go and see Balthazar. So when he passed a grim looking Shanks in the kitchens, his curiosity peaked.

"Oi, Shanks." He called, ignoring the look he was sent that was supposed to make him correct it to Shanks-sensei, or Shanks-sama. "What's up?" He asked. "You're looking pretty moody for a guy that's normally quite happily drunk on sake."

Shanks rolled his eyes. "Now I know who keeps stealing it from my secret stash."

"Not that secret." Zoro grinned. "Now what's up?"

"The interrogation of the princess's attacker isn't going too well. He's very stubborn." Shanks sighed. "Won't tell us anything aside from his name. He knows that without permission from the head agent, we're not allowed to torture him for information. And I haven't as yet been able to get in touch with Mihawk because he's working a long shift at the palace to make up for your absence." He explained.

"What's his name?" Zoro asked.

"Helmeppo apparently." Shanks shrugged.

Immediately Zoro's face darkened. "Is that so?" He murmured, slowly sheathing and unsheathing one of his katanas repeatedly. Without saying anything more, he turned away and headed for the interrogation rooms, having remembered when he'd been held in there himself when he'd first been brought in.

Frowning, Shanks followed him. "Zoro? Where are you going?" He asked.

"To get information." Zoro scowled.

"You can't hurt him Zoro, it's against the law-"

"Which I broke for four years. Give me a break. " Zoro snapped, opening the door to the room and locking it behind him once he was inside.

Much like he remembered, there was a chair in the centre of the room with a table a little in front of it. The light dangled precariously from the ceiling above the chair, reflecting off of the one way mirror that was on the wall, of which Zoro knew that Shanks would be cursing on the other side of, waiting to see what Zoro would do.

"Who's there?" Helmeppo called out from where he was tightly bound the the chair, his arms looking almost painfully roped to the arm-rests of the wooden chair. "I'm not telling you anything." He added. "You only know my name, not who I am or what I do!"

"Oh really?" Zoro asked, slowly wandering around to stand in front of him, his eyes alight with a dark fire.

Helmeppo's words died on his lips, and his eyes went wide with fear, his whole body starting to tremble. "R-Roronoa Zoro.."

"Helmeppo." Zoro returned. "I do believe I know you as a part of the Kali gang. Still serving under Sanji then?"

"H-He...We thought you were-"

"What, dead?" Zoro asked, raising an eyebrow. "Bitch please. I wouldn't let myself be killed by a handful of agents." Helmeppo remained silent, vainly trying to pull at the ropes that held him. "There's absolutely no use in that." He remarked. "You're not as strong as I am."

"You got out of this?" Helmeppo asked. "To do what, become a government dog? H-how did you even survive the agent atta-"

"I'LL...be asking the questions." Zoro yelled, making Helmeppo shrink back into his chair in fear as Zoro loomed over him a little. "So..first things first. How did you get into the palace?"

The skinny blonde man shook his head, to which Zoro smirked a little. "We can make this a lot harder you know, so if you tell me now..." He left the threat hanging. Still shaking his head, Helmeppo defiantly pursed his lips.

Shrugging, Zoro stood back up to his full height. Helmeppo stilled in fear as he felt a cold sweat start up. Seconds later, he screamed in pain as Zoro's katana flashed upwards and sliced a thin diagonal papercut into his lips. Unable to clap his hands to them to pressurize them, Helmeppo tugged at his bonds uselessly.

"As I said, you might want to loosen your tongue." Zoro stated.

"Th-th-they can't..You're not a-allowed to hurt me without-"

"Without permission from the head agent. Yeah I know." Zoro cut him off. "But who do you think I am. Hmm? I DON'T GIVE A FUCK." He shouted. "Besides, whatever they do to me afterwards would be worth it."

Whining through his stinging lips, Helmeppo shook his head.

"So do yourself a favour. Tell me. How the fuck, did you get into the palace?" Zoro asked once more, leaning in slightly so that he was face to face with the man.

Wordlessly, Helmeppo spat the blood from his lips into Zoro's face. Wiping the blood off of his face as he stood up straight again, Zoro smirked. "Really now, you should have spat it onto the sword. That way it could join the rest of your blood."

Helmeppo started screaming as the katana sliced into his left arm, creating a line across his wrist. But that was just the first, as the katana sliced at least ten times, about halfway up to Helmeppo's elbow before he started to scream words. "THE SUIT!"

Zoro didn't stop straight away. He added the final few up to Helmeppo's elbow before stopping. "What was that?" He asked, glaring at Helmeppo pointedly. "I want it in detail."

His body trembling with the pain and want to be free so that he could nurse his arm, Helmeppo began talking. "Th-the suit. D-Dressing up as an agent is simple enough...b-b-black attire and walking into the palace. Th-they stop you until you say th-that you're one of the MI5 agents, and then they didn't qu-question it."

Hoping that Shanks was taking note of the information from behind the mirror, Zoro ploughed on with his next question. "Why did you go after Princess Robin?" He questioned.  
After no immediate answer, he started on the other arm, making Helmeppo scream horrednously as Zoro cut more slowly, dragging the blade across with a little more force and pressure so that the cuts were a little bit deeper, only very lightly managing to scratch the bone. "ANSWER. MY FUCKING. QUESTION." He thundered, his face a mask of terrifyingly cold anger.

"BECAUSE OF A POWER PLAY. SANJI MEANT TO SHOW THAT HE COULD ATTACK ANYWHERE. ANY TIME." Helmeppo screamed.

This time, Zoro did not stop. The lacerations continued all over the body until there was not a part of Helmeppo that wasn't bleeding. "And why is he doing that?"

"AAAAAAH! STOP PLEASE!" Helmeppo screamed. "TO EXPAND HIS TERRITORY."

Stunned for a second, Zoro stopped. "How has he been doing it?" He questioned, infuriated at the thought of Sanji trying to take his territory.

There was no answer until the katana delivered three lacerations in quick succession to Helmeppo's left cheekbone.

"TH-THE UNDERGROUND!...Starting with central London, he edged his w-way over to y-y-your territory and is s-s-slowly moving west!" Helmeppo gasped. "He was looking for your base."

"Has he found it?" Zoro questioned, his bloodied katana resting at his side as he watched Helmeppo struggle with words, becoming more and more panicked.

"I-I-"

"HAS HE FOUND IT?" Zoro roared, slamming his hands down on Helmeppo's arms.

"NO! ! ! NOT YET! WHEN I LEFT THEY WERE STILL LOOKING." Helmeppo cried, tears streaking down his face as he gasped with sobs of pain. "L-Last I heard, th-they were going to start t-t-torturing people for information..."

Zoro released Helmeppo's arms, his hands coming away bloody as he watched Helmeppo breathe heavily. "You know...If the descision was left to me, I would have you tortured properly and killed, you mewling quim." Zoro spat, kicking the legs of the chair out so that Helmeppo fell and landed on his back with a scream of pain. "But you're such a pussy that you wouldn't even last the torture."

With that, Zoro turned to leave, sheathing his katana along the way.

"It'd be n-n-nothing in comparison...to what Sanji has p-planned for..y-your group when he finds them!" Helmeppo called out, his voice trembling in fear.

Zoro stopped with his hand on the door handle. He tilted his head back to glance at Helmeppo dangerously. "Thank you for your co-operation." He said emotionlessly, opening the door and slamming it behind him.

Walking up to a very still Shanks, Zoro leaned back slightly as he stood next to him. "There. You have all the information you need. What will you do with him now?"

"At the moment, we're not sure." Shanks replied, his voice low. "Zoro..." He started quietly. "How many times have you done that?"

Frowning in confusion, Zoro glanced at him side-long. "What, tortured people?" Shanks nodded. "Uhm...I think maybe a few times to bastards who were causing a riot and terrorising the citizens on my territory." He admitted, thinking it over for a moment. "Don't worry about it though. I've never done it to someone who didn't deserve it."

"And how many have you killed?" Shanks asked.

"By torture or by just...killing?" Zoro questioned, feeling a little uncomfortable at the sudden quiz.

"Either."

Zoro was quiet with his response. So quiet that Shanks asked him to repeat it a little bit louder. "It's somewhere just over fifty." Zoro scowled, turning away from the second in command.

Sighing out through his nose, Shanks nodded. "Ok." He said, testing the edges of his teeth. "I just needed to know...You may go."

"Is that it?" He asked. "You're not gonna rip my hair out for using violence or sabotaging an interrogation?"

"I see no need. As long as your father does not hear about the way in which the information was extracted, we will be fine."

Zoro clenched his jaw, the both of them standing in silence for a few moments. Not sparing a backwards glance at the man he had just tortured, he left.

* * *

The next day, Zoro rode with Rayleigh through the torrential downpour straight to the palace. "Where's Mihawk?" He asked as they allowed their horses to be taken by the royal stable hands.

"He'll be relieving us of our shift later this afternoon come evening." Rayleigh informed him, making Zoro nod in understanding.

As they entered the royal drawing room, Zoro grunted in surprise as he was thrown backwards a little bit with a pair of arms wrapped around him almost desperately. Glancing down, he smiled a little as he saw the beautiful raven hair nestled on his well-muscled chest. "My knight! You are healed." Robin smiled as she let go of him and examined his features to make sure that he was ok.

"Knight?" Zoro quizzed, glancing between her and Rayleigh.

"You are my black armoured knight." Robin laughed, the sound sweet and innocent.

"And why is that?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Because you sacrificed yourself to save me." She replied, a slightly hopeful look in her eyes.

"Hm." Zoro nodded.

"Or maybe an angel." Robin mused.

At that, Zoro scoffed. "I don't think so my lady. I may be on the side of the angels, but do not think for one second that I am one of them." He said, his voice sounding almost menacing.

Robin smirked. "I love it when you sound all dangerous." She remarked. "It's quite a turn on."

The swordsman blinked, unsure of what to say whereas Rayleigh started to snigger behind him. "Moving on swiftly," Zoro coughed, glaring at Rayleigh, "what should you be doing?"

Holding up a piece of paper, Robin sighed and showed him the royal mark on the top of the paper. "Practising." She said. "Mother and Father have been called away on an important tour of Europe, meaning that because I am the next eldest and therefore heir to the throne, I must fill in for my father who usually does the Christmas speech over the radios and televisions."

"You still call it a television?" Zoro asked with a smirk.

"Yes, why? What do you call it?" Robin questioned.

"A TV." Zoro responded. "S'alot easier."

Rolling her eyes, Robin took up the place that she had been stood at before, the piece of paper in hand. "In any case. The Christmas speech will be in a week, so I must practise it." She continued.

Rayleigh smiled at her. "Then practise with us. We are your audience." He winked, making her smile back.

As she practised, Rayleigh helped to coach her voice on how to really make listeners feel as though they were being inspired. Making sure that on specific words she lilted her voice as accurately as possible, allowing the words to flow from her mouth as if they were being written across a page.

Zoro watched her as she did so, noticing the way that she proudly held herself and spoke with calm confidence. Looking at her, he couldn't help but think of the dance that they had performed at the royal ball. The way that she had gracefully stepped her way across the dance floor the way that a princess should, yet both of them knowing that what they were doing was highly inappropriate, but doing it anyway.

Thinking about it, he noticed that he'd paid much more attention to her than any other girl he'd ever met. After having known her for at least over a month whilst guarding her, he'd come to know her. The way she thought, her stunning beauty, her rebellious streak. What she liked, what she didn't like, wanted, hoped for...and even dreamed of.

Closing his eyes, he focused his thoughts on her and let her voice lull him to sleep. Trying to ignore the fact that his heart was trying to tell him something important.

* * *

Finding himself sitting against the wall some time later, he was surprised when he felt Rayleigh shake him awake. "How long have I been asleep?" He asked.

"About two hours." Rayleigh informed him. "I swear you sleep too much for a kid your age."

"I'm not a kid." Zoro grumbled.

"Yeah y'are." Rayleigh disagreed. "Besides, I woke you up because I've been called away to a mission on the streets, leaving you on your own for a bit. Apparently there was something of a riot down in Covent Garden the other day, and they think they've found someone willing to talk about it."

Nodding in understanding, Zoro accepted the hand that Rayleigh extended to him and stood up, allowing Rayleigh to lead them into Robin's bedchamber. At that moment, Robin entered the room behind them, dabbing at her lips a little. "You're up." She stated. "Shame...you missed dinner." Glancing at Rayleigh, Zoro nodded as he watched the agent leave. "Rayleigh's leaving?" She questioned.

"He's been called away on business." Zoro replied edgily.

Robin smiled as she went and sat at her desk, turning around in it and resting her arms on the back of and then resting her head on her arms. "That means that we're alone, and you can tell me your story." She said calmly, making Zoro sigh and smirk, knowing that she'd cornered him. "Just until Mikoto and the maids come in to sort out my chamber." She persuaded.

"Fine. But I'll only answer questions, not tell you my whole life story." He agreed.

"Fine by me." Robin replied. "So...Agent Mihawk. Who is he to you?" She asked directly.

Zoro groaned, hanging his head a little bit as he leaned up against the edge of her desk next to her. "He's my boss...the head of MI5." He started. "But he also happens to be my father." He admitted.

"I knew it." Robin smirked.

"If you already knew it, then why did you ask me?" Zoro asked.

"I wanted to make sure that I was right." Robin giggled. Wanting to swear at her more than ever, he bit down on his tongue, waiting for her next question. "Who are you really?" She then demanded. He frowned at her in confusion, making her expand on her rather vague question. "What were you like before you became an agent? You told me when we first met, that you _used_to have fun. Why don't you any more?"

Zoro clicked the bones in his neck as he thought about how to structure his answer. "Well...You might not like the answer." He warned her. "I was a gang leader, and my territory was the western half of Central London and the other part of western London. My gang and I..we had fun, joked around, didn't take life too seriously. Yeah ok, we're thieves and we sometimes battle with a rival gang, but..that's life."

"And what about your gang? What were they like?"

"We're not the largest gang to have been seen around London. There's only eight of us, since we recently had a new recruit. We quarrelled sometimes, sure, but at the same time we had fun, learnt new skills. One of us can cook pretty damn well, another has the sharpest aim you've ever seen, we have a skilled doctor...and one of us has the stomach of at least four cows." He said, making Robin laugh as she pictured the thought of it. "But we look out for each other. And I still secretly visit them when I can. I miss them a lot when doing this...It was nice to have the feeling of family." He shrugged.

"Family? But what about Mihawk? Surely as the head of MI5-"

"He wouldn't let me become part of a gang, much less a gang leader, I know." Zoro interrupted. "But I wouldn't exactly call us close. I still don't consider him to be my family. When I was very young, my mother passed away in a terrorist attack. My father only ever wanted me to be an agent, and he tried to train me from that young age. I didn't like the fact that he was trying to control my life, so at thirteen I ran away and unintentionally started my own gang."

Robin rested a hand on his arm, her eyes full of sorrow. "Zoro I'm sorry..."

"It's ok." He laughed shortly, gently patting the hand on her arm. "It's all the past now."

"If you ran away, how are you still an agent?" Robin asked curiously.

"Because they managed to catch me. One of my gang accidently shot a paint pellet at your car when you travelled to France to strengthen the alliance between our countries. I made sure they got away whilst they caught me instead."

Robin gazed up into his eyes. "One final question, my knight." She told him with a smile. "Do you like me enough to love me?"

Zoro's breath caught in his throat for a moment, slightly taken by surprise at the question. "Wh-What? I-That's impossible. I couldn't. You're royalty! A princess! And I'm a...a...I mean..I.." He took a deep breath as he stared back. "Yes." He finally answered, unable to look away.

"Well then.." Robin smirked, tilting her head upwards invitingly as she stood, cupping his cheek with one hand.

Feeling drawn to her and completely out of control, Zoro slowly edged his head down and closed his eyes, his lips meeting hers in the sweetest of kisses. Losing himself in the moment, his mind turned numb as she returned the kiss wholeheartedly. He felt her hand leave his cheek and travel upwards, gently pushing his green moss-like hair the wrong way.

They broke apart to the sound of the door opening and footsteps entering, both of them turning to see Hawk-Eye Mihawk standing in the doorway, his face morphing into one of fury.

"Mihawk.." Robin said calmly. "I think-"

"I'm a little early, yes." He snapped, his yellow eyes piercing as he glared at his son. "And a good thing too. Roronoa, come with me."

Zoro stood there, unsure of what to do as he battled with the idea to either stay and argue, or flee the scene and get away from the father who was slowly building himself up into a rage. Noticing the look on Zoro's face, Robin stood in front of him protectively. "Where are you taking him?" She questioned, her hair falling in front of her face a little.

Striding forwards and grabbing Zoro firmly by the shoulder, Mihawk answered her coldly. "Back to headquarters where he will be receiving a new mission until he proves himself to be worthy of guarding you once more. Until then he will be relieved of his duty to you."

Robin's eyes widened in horror and she clutched onto Zoro's arm as he began to struggle against Mihawk who started to drag him out of the door. "No!" She cried. "You can't! I love him!"

At this, Mihawk turned to her sharply. "And this is precisely the problem." He stated, pulling the struggling, shouting Zoro out into the corridor and away down the stairs, shutting Robin's door as he did so and pulling a special lock across the door. Robin banged her fist against the door uselessly when she was unable to open it, secondly trying to use her devil fruit powers to open the lock from the other side, however this too proved uselessly as she realised that he'd locked her in with the seastone lock.

Realising she couldn't get out to save her knight, she stumbled away from the door with a single tear trailing down her cheek, former out of love, sorrow, anger and frustration. She stood there with a million thoughts rushing through her head until she sank to the floor, not noticing as the door opened a little while later to reveal three of the royal housemaids.

One, dressed in the standard black and white royal housemaid dress with her dark green hair tied back in a ponytail, helped Robin back up and onto the bed. "It's ok my lady. I'll have Perona fix you a hot chocolate." She comforted, nodding to the floating girl with pink hair who disappeared to do as she was told.

"Mikoto." Robin said, her breathing slightly uneven. "I've done something horrible to someone..and now they're in trouble because of it."

Mikoto handed the princess a tissue and shook her head. "I'm sure it wasn't that bad my lady. What did you do?" She asked, tucking a strand of Robin's raven hair behind her ear.

Robin's eyes slowly filled with the start of tears. "I fell in love."

* * *

_**Short chapter I know, but things are just starting to heat up. ;D  
Kai XxxXxxX**_


	9. Chapter 9

_**Chapter 9**_

_**I loved how in the reviews, everyone freaked out about the kiss and Zoro being taken away from her...BUT NO ONE CARED ABOUT USSOP NEARLY DYING. XD**_

_**But yeah, thank you for the reviews! =3 I warn you, it might be a while until the next update. I know I said that last time, but I mean it this time. =/**_

_**Right, I'm going to say nothing more. ;D**_

* * *

Shanks had read the report in disbelief. He knew that Zoro had been desperate to get out of MI5, but he didn't think that he'd go as far as kissing a princess. The news that Zoro had been removed from he duties towards Princess Robin had spread around headquarters like wildfire but with no-one knowing why, as well as the fact that Zoro had not actually been kicked out of the job entirely.

Instead, he had been thrown into the cell where he had been tied up once more with his back against the cross. His arms were tightly bound by his wrists, just below his elbows and directly across his biceps. There was absolutely no chance of escape. He grimaced in pain as he moved slightly, causing pain across his torso due to the giant cut that now cut him diagonally from shoulder to hip.

Having arrived back at headquarters with a lot of struggling, Zoro had withdrawn two of his katanas and tried to attack Mihawk, managing to get in possibly two small papercuts to the man's cheek.

Whereas Mihawk had blocked the attacks with a sword that people rarely saw withdrawn from the sheath on his back. The large black sword, Kokuto Yoru, had been unsheathed. And in one striking blow, had severed Zoro's katanas and left the deep mark on his torso.

Now, Zoro had been sentenced to no meals or water for a week whilst tied to the cross.

It was Shanks who visited him on the first day, bearing a needle and some black thread. "Figured that I might try my hand at sewing you up. I do love sewing patterns." He tried to joke. Seeing that it got no response, not even the lift of the head to acknowledge that Shanks had even come in, he decided to get on with it anyway. Bringing out a little bottle of sake, he grimaced. "I'm sorry, but this is going to hurt." He apologised.

As he gently let the sake trickle over Zoro's cut, he saw the boy's jaw clench in pain, seeing in the way he screwed his eyes shut how determined he was to shut the world out and not admit his pain. The same happened when Shanks heated the needle over a candle and began to carefully yet neatly sew up Zoro's wound.

"Seems we're both scarred." Shanks commented with a laugh as he pointed to the three lines over his eye whilst nodding to Zoro's slash across his chest which would undoubtedly turn into a very large scar when the stitches were removed.

"Is she ok?" Zoro suddenly asked, his voice quiet.

"Hm?" Shanks asked in surprise. "As far as I know, yes. You know, what you did would be viewed by her family as very dishonourable."

Zoro laughed shortly. "Yeah, dishonour. Make a note of this; Dishonour on you, dishonour on your family, dishonour on your cow-"

"Oi, no need for the sarcasm."

"There was every fucking need." Zoro spat. "I can't even tell her I'm sorry for ruining her life."

"From what I heard from Rayleigh, she's more upset about the fact that she's unable to say sorry to you for ruining yours." Shanks replied.

Zoro didn't reply, merely stared at the ground between his feet. Shanks sighed and uncorked the bottle of sake once more. "Look, I know your sentence, but quickly take a gulp on this. It might help for your coming week." He said, raising the bottle to Zoro's lips.

At first Zoro stared at him blankly, but then raised his head and tipped it back a little so that Shanks was able to pour some into his mouth. Relishing the taste for as long as he could, he swallowed and breathed out heavily. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. I doubt you'll get many visitors, but..I'll see what I can do. And I'm currently having your katanas fixed up. With luck they'll be finished in about two days." Shanks winked as he gathered the supplies and headed out.

Zoro had been bored before, but he hadn't prepared for the boredom that he felt in the white-walled room for that day. He didn't even know when it was day or night, so he had to gauge it for himself. He managed to get in a pretty good sleep, but he was unable to tell how much time had passed.

When he woke the next day, his stomach started to betray him a little as it growled hungrily. He told it to be quiet, more vehemently so the louder it got. "I'm not even using much energy, so shut up." He growled back after a particularly loud stomach growl.

Since he was having to stand up the whole time, his legs felt weak, making him sometimes have to hang by his arms, just so that the trembling would stop. There weren't any games that he could play against himself either. Even eye-spy gradually got boring.

"I spy something with my little eye, something beginning with L. Light. I win...I spy something with my little eye. Something beginning with M. Me. I win...I spy something with my little eye, something beginning wi-Me, again. Wow, I'm good at this..." Zoro muttered monotonously.

Hours passed spent in silence. Perhaps even a day or two at the most. The next time he saw anyone, was Rayleigh.

"Shanks managed to slip me a little bit of time off." Rayleigh explained as he entered the little white room. "M'afraid I couldn't sneak you any sustenance but I brought you this." He said, putting a litte radio in front of Zoro.

Zoro said nothing but stared at him.

"You're looking pale kid."

"How long has it been?" Zoro finally asked.

"You're halfway there." Rayleigh answered, sitting down on the floor in front of him. "It's evening now, so you've got about another three days yet. Likely scenario is that Hawk-Eye won't come and get you 'til the evening on the last day, so you'll get to hear the speech."

"Speech?" Zoro questioned in confusion.

Rayleigh nodded. "Remember? She's filling in for the Christmas speech."

It took Zoro a moment before he realised that he'd fallen asleep while she had been practising. "Oh..Oh yeah." He remembered "I think I ma-" He suddenly stopped short. Frowning, he tried again. "Ma-" This time his voice sounded raspy, his throat and tongue unable to produce the sound 'ay'. He screwed his eyes shut a little as he felt it grate along his throat.

He could barely make another sound after that, no matter how much he tried to salivate. Not wanting to show pity on the boy as he knew it would hurt his pride, Rayleigh tuned the radio station in until it finally started to produce the voices of the radio DJ's. "There we go." He nodded. "That'll keep you company for the rest of the week. Just make sure that you listen to when they say what the time is. That way you'll be able to count down the remaining days. Alright kid?"

Rayleigh was just able to make out Zoro mouthing the words '_I'm not a kid_', accompanied by a glare. Laughing, Rayleigh stood up and clapped him on the shoulder. "You'll make it just fine kid. Shanks and I won't let you die on our watch. Coby's been asking after you by the way. Asking where you were, and if you were ok." He mentioned before nodding to the green-haired teenager and starting to duck out of the door.

Then he paused. "Zoro...I think I should mention. Robin's been acting a little..well, strange. She's very much more on edge and is constantly looking about herself, as though she's nervous about something. I get the feeling she knows something. Or is expecting something to happen. If anything does you'll be the first to know. It was troubling me because she said she felt 'as exposed as a raw nerve to anyone wanting to get at her'. I told her that whilst we were here, nothing could get her. But I have the feeling that she's worried."

Zoro stared at him and furrowed his eyebrows in thought, watching as Rayleigh shrugged. "Maybe it's just the times we're in. Everyone seems to be jumping out of their skin at the slightest move." Rayleigh laughed, bidding farewell and leaving.

Exhaling heavily through his nose, Zoro stared at the little old brown radio in front of him, studying every inch of detail in boredom. 'I spy..with my little eye...something beginning with R.' He thought with dry amusement. 'Radio. I win'.

Taking Rayleigh's advice, he listened for the times that the radio DJ's gave, calculating when to go to sleep, and when he woke up again the next day, listening intently for the time once more.

It worked effectively, and Zoro even enjoyed listening to some of the Christmas songs that were played, remembering a few of them that were played as the favourite Christmas songs belonging to some of his group. Nami's for example being 'All I want for Christmas'. Ace's being 'Here it is Merry Christmas'. Chopper, Ussop and Luffy sharing the favourite of 'Rocking around the Christmas tree' but also delighting in the up-beat Christmas songs.

At one point though, Zoro's eyes widened in terror and he vainly tried to kick out at the radio in an attempt to break it as Justin Beiber's Christmas song started to play. Unable to do so, he hung his head in defeat. '_Wow...This really is torture_,' he sweatdropped mentally.

Other songs he found, related to him or how he felt through the lyrics. One in particular reminding him of Robin in Olly Murs' 'Troublemaker'. Getting into the chorus, he sang along in his head. '_Why does it feel so good but hurt so bad? My mind keeps saying run as fast as you can. I say I'm done but then you pull. me. back...I swear you're giving me a heart attack. Troublemaker_'.

With the next two uneventful days that passed with him feeling weaker and weaker with hunger and thirst, he found himself kind of depending on the radio station to keep him sane and up to date with the news of the outside world, which wasn't very interesting in truth. Nothing was there that related to him or stood out at any rate.

So when he woke up on the last day, he listened to the DJ's chatter on how to survive through the Christmas dinners that people were to be eating that afternoon. "Yeah, you know Hina, I've always found that I eat too much turkey, so I don't really get the turkey left overs..."

"No Bonney, you just eat too much, Hina-laugh."

"Yeah, because it tastes so good. Anyway, it's now twelve o'clock, and now we have the King's speech who is being read out by the heir to the throne, Princess Robin, due to the King's absence."

At this, Zoro's head shot up and he stared at the radio, ignoring the alarming crack in his neck as the bones clicked. He waited, listening carefully as the sounds of the royal fanfare slowly died away.

There was a pause as he heard a deep breath being taken.

"People of Britain." Robin's confident voice spoke through the radio, making Zoro smile to himself. "I speak to you now as though I were able to reach through over your thresholds and speak to you as though I was next to you. This past year, we as one are able to look back on the good times that we have experienced. From the balls and parties held in households, down to the birthday's of a friend or loved one, we have all shared good times."

"A specific memory in which I share with you all, being during my father the King's jubilee. How all across the country, you welcomed us as we toured throughout Britain. Despite the weather in some places, the happiness on your faces was a joy to see. The way that you joined together in spite of the difficulties you face in the everyday hardships of life reminded me that throughout any situation, we are all bound as a people, and are able to see the light shining through even in the darkest of places. May we together remind ourselves of this as we pass into the new year."

There was a break in the speech, in which her steady breathing could be heard. "And finally, I wish to bid you a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year. To everyone from the children playing with their siblings, to the lone knight who will be thinking of that someone special. God be with you this Christmas Day."

Knowing for a fact that the second to last line hadn't been in the rehearsal, Zoro grinned to himself. 'She called out to me.' He thought, shaking his head knowingly. 'Knowing that I've been taken away, she knew that I'd be listening. Probably Rayleigh's doing, seeing as he gave me the radio.'

He laughed softly, but even that caught in his throat turning it into a very painful dry cough that made him shake a little. Pulling on his restraints uselessly, he sighed tiredly and hung his head once more, his legs shaking a little from having continuously stood up. As time wore on into the evening, the shaking became worse and Zoro's mind started to feel dizzy from the lack of nourishment.

So when Mihawk entered that evening and started to tell him that he would be in training again until the new year, Zoro was able to get a tiny glimpse of him before his legs gave way underneath him and he collapsed, completely passed out.

* * *

Stood at the bandstand of Kensington gardens, Princess Kaya finished her speech to the large crowd that had gathered that morning in the early hours of the January day, the sun just peeking out through the small lines of cloud.

Amid a loud cheer, people began to chatter and start the festives that had been set up in stalls, including games, rides and other such events.

There were quite a few agents around too, such as Aokiji, Garp, Kaku, Crocodile and Coby. Clad in his black suit of a uniform, Zoro also stood amongst them, keeping next to Coby for the most of the time. Unless around Coby, Shanks or Rayleigh, Zoro didn't say much. He felt like an outsider who was looking in on everyone else, seeing but not joining, and he hated it.

Instead he and Coby stuck close to Kaya's sides to make sure that she didn't do anything stupid or that nothing bad happened to her. There was one small near miss when they got to a stall about halfway down on the right hand side, where a man was stood next to a blackboard that he had propped up on a chair, the top of which read 'Sex Education'. There were a few people standing there, all of whom looked a little creeped out.

"-just don't do it ok? Now...Everyone take some rubbers." The man finally said, holding out a box full of small square packets.

Zoro noticed that Kaya, looking somewhat wary, was about to take one. Striding forwards, he made her stop by gently putting a hand on her arm. "My lady, it would be safer if you didn't." He advised, glaring at the man, who trembled a little in response.

"Oh..Ok." Kaya nodded, smiling nervously at the man before moving on to the next stall which promoted girl-world.

"-On Wednesdays we wear pink." One of the girls there gushed excitedly to the girls around their stall. Immediately Zoro tuned out, as did Coby who was stood next to him once more, the both of them attentively scanning the area.

It could have been a trick of the light, but for a moment Zoro thought he saw a flash of blue hair swinging out in a ponytail starting to cross onto the right hand side of the stalls with them a little further down. He focused on it, but lost it in the lively crowd.

"Hey, Coby-" Kaya started.

Distracted for a second, Zoro interrupted, pointing his thumb at Coby. "Uhh, yeah. His first name's Agent." He joked with a smirk, making Coby punch his arm lightly.

All of a sudden, a large bang like the sound of gunfire sounded out, smoke rising and billowing out swiftly. Grabbing Kaya's arm gently, Zoro pulled her over to a table and told her to stay underneath it whilst he called for aid.

In the smoke, Coby strained his eyes as he tried to look for the princess in a panic. Seeing her, Coby ran at Kaya, being stopped by Zoro grabbing his shoulder and pulling him back and then throwing the both of them to the floor just as a hail of knives flew in over the top of them.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING." Coby yelled frantically.

Zoro rolled his eyes in exasperation. "Not Kaya." He stated, pointing to the girl who was hiding underneath the table of an abandoned stall, where Zoro had instructed her to hide when the smoke bomb had been released.

Coby stared at him in disbelief. "How did you get dismissed from working with Robin agai-YAGH!" His question turned into a yell as Zoro suddenly shoved him over towards Kaya.

"Doesn't matter. Get here out of here. Take Garp and one of the bullet proof cars and get her back to the palace. Make sure she's not hurt, and get there as fast as you can. GO." Zoro ordered firmly, knowing that Coby would question him otherwise.

The pink haired boy nodded and ran over to the princess, picking her up and leading her away at a fast run, Zoro on her other side as he joined them. As they neared the edge of the park, he glanced back to check that no one was following them. His eyes suddenly widened.

"WATCH OUT." He roared, diving behind Coby.

There was a sickening thud, making Kaya and Coby stop at the same time. Coby turned around fearfully, seeing Zoro bent double at the waist and holding one hand to his mouth, the other to his stomach. He started to panic when Zoro coughed, blood splattering all over his hand.

"Z-Zoro!" Coby said, staring at him.

"GO. IDIOT." Zoro shouted, blood spraying from his lips as he winced, pulling the knife out from his stomach with a pained grunt, making Coby's eyes go wide at the move. However, he listened and obeyed without question, taking Kaya at an even faster run, staying behind her slightly as they headed towards the car.

Zoro shivered as his vision blurred in front of him, alerting him to the fact that he had been poisoned. He managed to make out the outlines of two figures walking towards him and he licked both of his hands clean of his blood before he unsheathed two of his katanas defensively. "You are not getting past me." He threatened.

The figures stopped momentarily and glanced at one another, but then continued once more, moving around him as they went after Coby and Kaya. Zoro grit his teeth. There was no way in hell that he was going to be ignored.

With not a word, he spun around and sliced diagonally upwards, catching the two by surprise as their clothes were ripped open, one of them even getting a slight cut on his skin. They stopped and turned to face him once more.

"Don't touch me you flashy bastard." One said. Zoro focused as hard as he could on the voice, realising that it was the voice of Buggy the clown, one of Sanji's lackeys. "Wait a minute...is that...? Z-Z-ZORO?! RORONOA ZORO?" Buggy screeched.

Zoro replied with a downwards slash towards the other man that he had yet to figure out. As he made his move, the man moved closer and grabbed his arms, halting the downwards motion of the katanas. At this close a view, it was hard to mistake Marco's yellow pineapple.

"Give it up." Marco said bluntly.

"Hah...You can give up..on me...giving up." Zoro grinned breathlessly as the poison from the cut started to take effect. With one swift motion he spun the katanas around in his hands and backed up, creating two gashes in Marco's side as the katanas ripped his skin brutally, puncturing and slicing his flesh so that he yelled out in pain and released Zoro's arms instantaneously, allowing him to turn and cross his katanas over to block the blade of Buggy's incoming dagger.

Buggy flipped the dagger into his other hand and brought it in a smooth uppercut, only to be blocked with one katana whilst its brother stabbed him in the right shoulder, making him lose his grip on the dagger.

The poison rolled over Zoro's senses in a huge wave, almost like a painful wave of tiredness. He fell to his knees, his katana's either side of him on the floor from where he'd dropped them.

Buggy saw his chance and raised his uninjured arm to punch Zoro, but as the fist came down, Zoro reached up, catching it expertly at the last second. With a wicked grin, he twisted it in one powerful move, dislocating Buggy's wrist and making the man cry out in pain, as it was something that he couldn't repair with his devil fruit like Marco was slowly trying to.

Managing to get himself into a state of lesser pain, Marco stood over Zoro. "You've fallen low Zoro...and you will die by Sanji when he knows that you're still somehow alive." He spat. "Just you wait, government scum."

Zoro's head whipped up and his eyes glowed with fires akin to that which raged in hell, his body feeling something like adrenaline running through it as he stared at Marco, a vein almost jumping out of his skin in anger. In that moment, Marco's body gave out underneath him as he fell almost unconscious, relying on Buggy who caught him at the last second with a stunned look on his face.

"M-M-MARCO! DAMN IT LET'S MOVE YOU FLASHY BASTARD!" Buggy yelled in a panic as he all but dragged Marco away, glaring at Zoro as the agent grabbed his katanas once more and tried to stand up.

Zoro yelled out to the other agents, but he knew the two would be long gone, having headed for the safety of their base to tell Sanji that Roronoa Zoro did indeed live.

"...Shit." Zoro cursed, taking a glance down at the stab wound in his stomach. "I need to stop jumping in front of princesses." He laughed humourlessly.

"Zoro!" Aokiji called out as he ran over. "The others gave chase, but we were too late." He reported. "Good work though. Very quick thinking."

"Yeah..Somehow managed to knock one of them out just by glaring at him. And speaking of quick," Zoro gasped, "I've got very quick poison coursing through my veins. Anything you can do to get it out?"

Aokiji's face became grim. "Seems like you're awoken your Haki. And yes I can do something, but it'll hurt like..well, hell I suppose. I can't do it with you awake."

"Great." Zoro coughed, tasting blood on his tongue.

Then he felt Aokiji press two fingers to his neck and push hard. Like a lightbulb, Zoro slipped into unconsciousness and Aokiji carefully stuck his hand into Zoro's stomach wound, allowing the ice to spread into Zoro's body and keeping a watchful eye on Zoro's heart-rate. Melting the ice, he diffused the water from it into every bit of poison that the water could feel, and when confident that he had managed to get all of it, he slowly withdrew the water and turned it back into ice, trapping the poison within before depositing it into a nearby bin.

"That'll do it." Aokiji nodded. "Let's get you back to headquarters."

* * *

"-Yeah, it was weird." Kaya said as she told Mikoto about the stalls that had been at the Kensington Gardens. "The guy just sat there and said; 'Don't have sex. You will get pregnant...and die.'" Kaya said from where she was sat on her bed and being checked over by Coby, her face screwed up to show how much it had weirded her out.

Mikoto stared at her and blinked, trying to hold back her laughter. "Well...he's not correct ma'am, that's one thing for sure."

"Did you ever have any children Mikoto? Or want to?" Kaya asked.

"Me? Yes, I did. A little boy whom I left at home with his father whilst I came and worked here." Mikoto replied, busying herself with gathering the laundry.

"You left them?"

"I had no choice but to." Mikoto smiled, curtseying somewhat awkwardly with the laundry in her hands as she took her leave.

"Do you ever see them?" Kaya quickly called out.

Pausing in the doorway, Mikoto turned back. "Sometimes." She answered cryptically, nodding her head before leaving for the laundry room.

Humming to herself, Kaya glanced up at Coby. "Coby, are you alright?" She asked, her eyes full of kindness and concern for her protector.

Smiling at her, he nodded. "Aa. I'm fine my lady. I'm just wondering.."

"About Zoro?" Kaya questioned. "You're worried for him."

"Yes. I'm hoping he is ok. He's always getting hurt, and I'm wondering if he's weakening a little."

Kaya shook her head in response. "I don't think he's weakening." She disagreed, making Coby glance at her in surprise. "In fact...I rather think he's getting stronger."

* * *

Sanji watched as Franky dragged the two male civilians into the light of their base, the wind howling outside and the rain lashing against the windows. "Tell me." Sanji said, calmly sighing out a cloud of cigarette smoke. "You are in an out of the palace quite a bit, yes?"

"Y-Yes sir." The older civilian stuttered. "I-I-I deliver the food t-to the chefs."

"So I'm guessing the security will have increased due to someone getting in there and trying to kill the princess a while back. Am I right?"

The younger civilian nodded, squeaking in pain as Franky kicked him in the side. "Yes s-sir." He answered, more to Franky's liking as shown by the cyborg nodding in satisfaction and crossing his large metal arms over his chest.

"Good. Then you are to provide us with a way in." Sanji stated, pleased with the idea.

The young male jumped up straighter on his knees with an exclamation. "WE DO NOT HELP CRIMINALS! A-AND WE WOULD NEVER B-BETRAY OUR COUNTRY LIKE TH-THAT."

Raising his curled eyebrow, Sanji mumbled a muffled 'ohh?' through his cigarette, taking it out of his mouth to speak. "Mmm...Mmm...Well said boy, well said. Indeed, thank you for telling us where your allegencies lie. Now we know that we have no further need of you in particular." Sanji smirked, nodding to Eustass Kidd on his left, who grinned manically and grabbed the youth by his neck, who gurgled in panic as he was taken to a room on the left that adjoined to theirs, slamming the door behind him.

There was a pause.

"Well. I hope that you are able to see some sense, otherwise we'll have to find someone else, and that will be a terrible bother." Sanji said, glancing down at the old man who was still kneeling at his feet, his body trembling as he hid his tears in his beard.

"Y-Yes sir." The old man whispered.

There was a scream that was cut short as an entire magazine round was heard to be emptied from a machine gun on the other side of the door that Kidd had gone into. The old man whimpered and screwed his eyes tightly shut.

"Excellent." Sanji grinned.

Suddenly a frantic Buggy burst in, carrying a half-concious Marco. "HE'S BACK." Buggy screeched. Scowling at the clown-faced man, Sanji motioned to Trafalgar Law, who took Marco from Buggy and disappeared out of the room.

"Buggy, what are you talking about? Could you for once actually make some sense?" Sanji asked heavily as Franky dragged the old man out of the room.

Clearing his throat, Buggy took a deep breath and prepared himself for what he was about to say next. "When we went to attack princess Kaya like you ordered, there was this guy, and he did something to Marco, and dislocated my hand." Seeing Sanji raise his eyebrow at him questioningly, he glanced away momentarily, starting to break out into a little bit of a sweat. "Well...I mean it's just that...Roronoa Zoro is alive."

Sanji's eyes flashed angrily. "Repeat that. Now." He demanded, his voice taking on a steely tone that was colder than ice.

"Roronoa Zoro is alive and is working as one of the government agents." Buggy admitted warily.  
"WE LEAVE NOW. GET IN THAT FOOD DELIVERY VAN WITHIN THE NEXT TWO MINUTES. I'LL KILL ANYONE THAT DOESN'T MAKE IT ON TIME. MOVE." Sanji roared, his eyes alight with determination as he strode out into the stairwell of the tall building of flats, grabbing the old man from Franky's hands and gripping him by the front of his shirt. "You will ensure that we get inside the palace. Fail, and you will die." He threatened angrily.

The civilian swallowed nervously and nodded his head vigorously to show that he understood.

Trafalgar Law peeked out of one of the flat rooms. "Sanji. Marco still needs attending to. I'm afraid that he and I will have to sit this one out." He stated, his voice emotionless.

"Make sure no one upstairs gets out. Ok Law? Marco can wait until we return. Guard the prisoners and keep them quiet. I will kill you if anyone apart from us gets in or out of this building." Sanji snarled before heading off down the stairs, his gang following close behind.

* * *

At the palace, Princess Kaya stood in front of her open wardrobe and frowned in thought. "I hate having to go to dinner sometimes...I'm never sure of which dinner dress to wear." She sighed. From where he was stood at the side of the room with Garp, Coby laughed quietly, but not unkindly.

"My lady, your sister will coming to get you in a minute, so it would be best if you chose now rather than in half an hour." He advised playfully.

Suddenly, multiple loud thumps accompanied by a muffled yell sounded from a little way down the corridor. Confused, Coby glanced at Garp before opening the door to Kaya's chambers and glanced outside. His eyes widened and he called out to Garp. "GARP, STAY WITH KAYA."

Gritting his teeth, Coby ran straight down the corridor and stopped at the still, unconscious bodies of Kuro, Sengoku and Diamond Jozu that littered the area. Shaking his head worriedly, he ran down the rest of the corridors and down the stairs, heading towards the back entrance of the palace as he followed the sounds of the muffled struggle. As he reached the outside world, he managed to get a glimpse of Robin as she had a bag stuck over her head and three people lifting her into a van.

An old man got out of the van and tried to stop them. But yet another person, one with flaming red hair, intervened and swiftly grabbed him and snapped his neck, leaving the poor dead man out in the cold as the gang of them scrambled into the van and prepared to escape.

"NO! ROBIN!" Coby cried, springing forwards and taking a P99 pistol from the inside of his jacket, and aiming at the van's tires. His aim was off by centimetres, hitting the metal disk at the centre of the wheel.

Cursing colourfully, he started to sprint back into the palace.

* * *

Shanks and Zoro were sat at the canteen, Zoro having already finished eating and was sat watching Shanks continue with his paperwork and moaning about the amount of it, saying that he'd rather drink sake instead. Rolling his eyes, Zoro stood and excused himself, wanting to grab his katanas from Shanks' office so that he could start training.

Unlocking the door with expert ease, Zoro saw the katanas on the desk from where Aokiji had deposited them whilst healing him. He jumped as the mini radio suddenly crackled to life on the desk, hearing Coby's voice come through in a panic.

"Agent Coby to head quarters, we have code red! Does anybody hear me? We have code red!"

Blinking for a moment, Zoro grabbed the radio and pressed the reply button, speaking clearly into the radio. "Coby, this is Zoro. What do you mean code red?"

"Robin's been kidnapped. We need a search team to go out looking for h-"

Zoro interrupted, his face grim as he replied. "Screw the search team Coby. I'll handle it."

"Wh-What? Zoro, you need to tell Shanks! You can't-"

"Coby, I know exactly where she'll be and by the time the other agents find her it could be too late. I can handle it." Zoro snapped. Switching off the radio, he strapped the katanas around his waist and did up the first two buttons of his suit jacket.

"I'll bring her back."

* * *

Robin felt the bag being lifted from her head, and she tossed her head back as they did so, successfully freeing her hair with it. She immediately opened her eyes, blinking at the harshness of the sudden light and instinctively looking at the floor instead.

"LET ME GO. LET. ME. GO! WHAT DO YOU WANT WITH ME?" She screamed, tears filling her eyes for a moment before she swiftly blinked them back, seeing as she was unable to use her hands to wipe them away if she did start crying. Were her hands not bound by seastone shackles, she would have already used her devil fruit powers to help her escape, which was now impossible seeing as she had no idea where she was.

In the corners or at the edges of the room, she could make out figures through the raven hair that was fallen in front her face a little, slightly covered messy from the bag and how much she had struggled. There were at least seven people around the room. Trembling slightly, she grit her teeth in determination. 'I don't care who they are. I don't care what they will do to me. I will prevail.' She told herself mentally, the thought calming her so that the trembling stopped altogether.

She slowly glanced upwards as a deep, sexy male chuckle sounded out from a young blonde man who stepped forwards with a lit cigarette in one hand, his fringe covering his left eye and most of that side of his face, whereas the curly eyebrow on the other side of his face was unmistakable. He was dressed in a deep sea blue suit, and stubble was just starting to appear along his jawline, making him look like a truly dapper gentleman. "Mademoiselle..," he drawled in a very British accent, "surely you can tell that we want the wealth and power that you can give us."

"I will give you nothing." Robin spat.

The man smiled, taking another drag of his cigarette. "My name is Sanji. Leader of the Kali gang, who are now proceeding to take over London." He introduced, spreading his arms wide before returning one hand to his cigarette and the other back into his trouser pocket.

"What about the other gangs?" Robin asked, trying to keep her voice steady.

Sanji scoffed. "You mean the one gang whose injured member helped lead us to their base? The Mugiwara gang have been...contained. They will be used for a special purpose, as will you my sweet. But first we're going to keep you here for a bit. I need to make some important preparations you see."

Robin tried to push down the wary feeling that was starting to blossom inside her stomach. "Such as?" She asked boldly, raising a delicate eyebrow.

Laughing incredulously, Sanji paused in taking another breath from his cigarette. "What is with all these questions? You're our prisoner, and there's nothing you can do about it. And I'm not so much a fool to give you vital information."

She wet her lips slightly with her tongue before asking her next question, knowing that her time was probably limited. "Are you going to hurt me?" She questioned, the nerves turning into butterflies that scraped along the lining of her stomach and made her shiver involuntarily. Shaking the feeling away, she allowed her ice-cool head take over and calmed herself as she waited for his answer.

Sanji frowned cutely and pouted as he shook his head. "Oh no, no, no. I couldn't! You're far too great a beauty for that. And I can't harm pretty women."

Suddenly there was a thump from above them.

"I NEED FOOD. GET ME OUT OF HERE. I'LL KICK YOUR ASS EVEN ON AN EMPTY STOMACH."

A quiet hiss followed seconds later. "Shut up Luffy, you troublesome little brother. We all feel the same, but if you haven't noticed, we're trapped, and Zoro is currently trapped  
working for the MI5."

There was a pause before the shouting started up.

"EHHH? SO WE'RE GONNA STARVE TO DEATH?"

"I DON'T WANNA DIE!"

"SHUT UP USSOP."

"Nami..Why are you so cruel...I'm still recovering..."

"Because Ace is right, and I wanna kick that...that...Red-headed prick, Kidd, up his fucking arse so hard that he can see the colour of his intestines."

"Guys...Can someone help me get away from her? She scares me a little when she's like this."

"Thatch, I feel for you man."

"Thanks Ace."

"SHUT UP. Luffy, can you see if you can str- HE'S ASLEEP."

Closing his eyes in irritation, Sanji shakily exhaled a cloud of cigarette smoke. "SOMEONE SHUT THEM UP." He finally yelled, a tick mark appearing in his forehead. He watched as Franky nodded once, motioning with a metal hand for Tashigi to follow him, the both of them walking out of the room in seemingly no hurry.

"They can be quite loud sometimes, so we have to keep them quiet you see." Sanji explained, as though he was letting her in on a private joke. "But no-one's going to save them any time soon...or you."

'You said you wouldn't hurt me.' Robin said calmly, her eyes and voice betraying nothing, even as she struggled at the seastone shackles that held her wrists together behind the back of the wooden chair that she was also bound to with rope.

"I did." Sanji agreed. "But I didn't say that anyone else wouldn't."With a laugh, he turned away and waved, heading toward the door to where most of his gang were waiting for him, seeing as two were staying behind to guard her.

"He'll come for me!" Robin yelled impulsively, making Sanji stop and slowly turn to her, raising his curled eyebrow at her in slight interest.

"Oh? Who's this now?" Sanji asked in a dangerous tone.

Robin lifted her chin proudly. "My Knight." She said clearly, her voice ringing around the room.

Sanji laughed long and loud after a few minutes of silence. "Well he can come for you, then. He'll die like anyone else that tries to save you." The door slammed behind him as he left.

Looking braver than she felt, Robin swallowed nervously as the skeleton and a light blue haired girl stepped forwards out of the shadows. The skeleton chuckled. "Yohohoho! Remember Vivi, we're not allowed to be as mean as upstairs. Only a few cuts here and there."

"Brook, we should be up there. They get to have more fun with the prisoners." Vivi scowled, her pretty face transforming with the look.

At that moment, a sharp crack followed by a scream was heard, the voice sounding like it belonged to the one they had called 'Luffy'. Robin held her breath in horror as she heard a child-like scream join it, also accompanied by that of the voice belonging to Ace, their agonized screams echoing through into the room below where she was being held.

From those three screams alone, mingled with the shouts of the other male voices plus the one female shouting for them to stop it, a single tear rolled down Robin's cheek as she listened, knowing that they were her Knight's friends.

'Please tell him Coby. Please find me...Find us.'

As Vivi raised a knife to her cheek, the cool metal resting on her cheekbone, Robin stilled.

Waiting for the torture to begin.

* * *

**_Kai. XxxXxxX_**


	10. Chapter 10

**Black as Knight.  
**_**Hey guys! =P  
(On a side note, DID ANYONE SEE 'LES MISERABLES'? *Freaks out majorly and flails like a fangirl* I NEED TO GO AND SEE IT!)  
Read on, and please review! (Thank you for all of the reviews so far!) =D**_

* * *

Zoro clenched his jaw as he walked outside of the building, checking that his katanas were securely strapped to his waist. When he'd spoken to Coby over the radio, he knew he'd said that he knew where Robin would be. '_Yeah, ok. I lied.'_ He thought to himself. '_But unlike the agents, I have a pretty good idea where it is, considering that Dart-brow took her. Knowing him, he'll cocoon himself right in the centre of his territory'._

Striding out in the directions of the stables, he stopped halfway. Not even sparing a glance at the stables, he pursed his lips together and let out a long, harsh whistle that would have made the ears of anyone stood around him bleed.

Almost immediately, there was a thunder of hooves that increased in volume as a black shape kicked its way out of the stable doors, breaking one completely off its hinges. Balthazar tossed his head as he drew to a halt alongside Zoro, waiting as his master grabbed a fistful of his mane and swung up onto his bare, unsaddled back. With barely even a nudge, Balthazar sprung forwards with a speed that made Zoro clench his mane even more.

Seeing as he had no reins, he used the pressure of his legs to guide Balthazar as to where he wanted to go, and sometimes a little use of the mane being pulled a bit in the same direction also helped. Without having to be told, Balthazar sensed his urgency, flattening his gait out into a full gallop in which Zoro impressively managed to stay seated.

Bolting across London, Zoro started to see buildings that were the tell-tale signs that he'd crossed over from neutral ground -in his opinion- into Sanji's territory. A few buildings were evidently not places in which Sanji would hide and allow to become his main base. Others were possible, but he quickly ruled them out when he saw people coming and going from them.

Spurring Balthazar on once more, he glanced down any other streets that they passed, ignoring the scared people that hurried out of the way of the horse's clattering hooves. Something that Zoro did notice, was the way that the deeper he went into Sanji's territory, the more terrified the citizens around him became. '_Must be getting closer.' _He mused as he turned Balthazar down yet another road.

He started to analyse what kinds of building Sanji would shut himself in. '_He's a regular show off. He wants the whole parade, fireworks, a tower built to the skies with his name on it...Son of a bitch. It shouldn't be this hard to find a-'_

His train of thought ended as he noticed a rather large building that had perhaps three to four floors and looked like some posh fancy restaurant on the outside. Turning Balthazar towards it, they cantered over towards it, but as they drew closer Zoro could see that past the two double doors it looked somewhat...dead.

And for a restaurant this pretty looking to have no customers going in or coming out, it set the suspicion bells ringing in Zoro's head. Gracefully dismounting from Balthazar, he brushed himself down and put a hand on the hilts of his three katanas, glancing up at the building before him as he stroked Balthazar's neck and instructed him to stay there. _'Will they even be in there?' _He wondered as he walked up the steps towards the double doors.

"Only one way to find out." He muttered.

Pushing the doors open, he made sure to close them behind him as quietly as he could. The inside of the building wasn't exactly fancy, but it was furbished at least. Zoro traced his hand down the side of the wall as he walked, seeing and feeling the trace of blood that had been washed away with bleach a long time ago but was as clear as day to someone as trained as he was.

Passing through the foyer, he approached the stairs and looked up through the middle of them. As he had suspected there were four floors, meaning that there were four flights of stairs. Silently, he began to ascend the first set, listening for anything that could alert him to danger. Reaching the first floor, he noted the six doors that were set out in a hotel-like fashion.

Approaching the closest one cautiously, he pushed it open with ease and peered inside. The drapes on the single far window were closed but had rips in them as though it had been shredded by an insanely large kitten, allowing small slithers of light to sketch out the interior of the room. Everything was strewn everywhere. On the bed, table and floor were things including clothes with fur linings, a lot of pieces of sharp, scrap metal or most things that had metal in them, and other various weapons.

Certain that he was on the right track, he quickly checked the other rooms to find similar layouts, the only difference being that some were tidier that others. His breathing shallow, he returned to the stairs and started to climb the second flight. As he reached the second floor, he perceived only one large wooden door with three porthole windows, like those that would be found on a ship.

Glancing through one of the windows, he saw the glistening metal worktops that shined like polished silver, accompanied by the black handles of knives, ladles, fish slices and other such culinary devices that were also there inside the incredibly large kitchen. Shaking his head with a tiny, barely even breathed snort, he turned back to the stairs and started to ascend them once more.

At that moment, he heard the voice of Ussop screaming in pain, the din added to by the shouting of what sounded like the rest of his gang. His blood ran cold for a second, and keeping silent, he sprinted up the stairs to the third floor. Realising that the screams weren't coming from that floor, as there was nothing but empty space in one huge room with the stairs in the middle of it, he raced up the fourth flight of stairs and stared at the corridor ahead of him.

Slowly pacing down the corridor, he felt his own dark aura pulsing around him in what seemed like dangerously calm waves of fury. To the left of him, he could see a door with a sign reading 'attic' on it, a small ladder leading up to the space between the roof of the building and the ceiling currently above him. Whereas the door on his right, with no windows that allowed him to see inside, intrigued him more.

From the silence within, he knew that they knew a person had entered the building, and as such were guarding whatever thing of value lay inside. Realising that he'd half unsheathed his black hilted katana, he slid it carefully back into place with a hiss of metal that was concluded by a clunk as the sheath met the hilt.

Forcing his aura down, he reached a hand out and placed it on the door, the sleeve of his black suit making the only noise of material moving as it crinkled a little at the movement. He proceed to heave the door open and take two slow, menacing strides inside.

The room was fairly light due to light pouring in through the window, even though the clouds outside were grey. Stood inside were the Kali group. Having battled them so many times, Zoro knew them by name. As his eyes roved over each of them, their names echoed within his mind. _'Franky, Kidd, Marco, Brook, Buggy and Vivi...Meaning that Law and Tashigi are upstairs with Thatch and the others.' _He deduced.

At the centre of it all, bound to a wooden chair with her hands shackled together with seastone handcuffs and a range of knives, guns and swords being held to her head or other vital parts of the body, was Princess Robin. Her normally beautifully smooth skin was cut and raw in places, blood trailing thickly from a slightly vicious cut to her temple.

When he saw this, Zoro's temper inwardly flared. However, he showed no emotion, not even the twitch of a cheek muscle. The members of the Kali gang flinched as they got a good look at him, taking in his unmistakable green hair and three gold earrings that hung from his ear. All except one, who casually walked forwards with a cigarette in his mouth and his hands in his pockets, his whole posture totally relaxed.

"So it's true." Sanji said, stopping at the distance halfway between Zoro and the princess.

"My Knight..." Robin breathed, raising her head to look at the swordsman .

Sanji laughed and pointed towards Zoro. "Him? He's your Knight? Do you know who 'he' is?"

Robin said nothing, instead locking eyes with Zoro after he had searched her face and body, taking in the damage that had been dealt to her. She could see the hatred in his eyes that he was unable to conceal, and in her eyes he could see the mixture of relief and calm hope that she placed in him to get her out of the mess that Sanji had landed her in.

"This man has killed people. Did you know that? Innocents too. And now look." Sanji continued contemptuously, flicking his blonde hair back proudly. "He's been made into a secret government dog. He casts a shadow that no longer looks like his own."

"Don't touch her." Zoro said quietly, not even rising to the jibe.

Sanji snorted. "Or what? Try anything. Even lift a finger..." He gloated, walking over to the princess and lifting her chin delicately as she fought the urge to pull away from him. "...and I'll just click my fingers. Sending a bullet through her pretty little head."

Zoro stiffened, making Sanji smirk slightly. "Has the Marimo fallen in love with the _princess_?" He clapped slowly as a grin took a hold of his features. "How...beautiful." He said. "So. What are you going to do? Are you here to ransom for her? Or do I get to blow her delicate little brains out?"

The swordsman stared at Sanji calculatingly, his eyes flickering once to Robin. "I'll pay the ransom." He nodded, walking forwards as he pulled a wallet out from his jacket and held it out to Sanji.

Staring at it as though it would explode upon touching it, Sanji walked back over and snatched it out of Zoro's hand, opening it and rifling through it. His eyes widened and his mouth twitched up into a smirk. "My, my...Someone earns a pretty sum." He remarked, glancing up at Zoro as he sealed the wallet away in his own jacket. "Now then, you're going to turn around and walk back down those stairs. We'll send the princess out five paces behind you. You're not allowed to turn and look back at her until you're both out of the building, otherwise you're both dead. And she'll be first." He grinned, taking a drag of his cigarette.

Heaving a sigh, Zoro turned on his heel and walked slowly towards the door. '_I've no other god damn option now.' _He thought emotionlessly. '_Shanks taught me to use it properly, but the moment I do, everyone in MI5 will pick up on it and let them know exactly where I am so that they can come and detain me...but I guess that's just the risk I have to take. For them.'_

He could hear Sanji's subordinates roughly pulling at Robin, and he stopped upon reaching the door, closing his eyes as he did so. Focusing only on the ones he wanted it to affect, he pushed down his dark aura of killing intent into the smallest point he could, feeling like it was a bungee rope being pulled taught, or a giant spring being pushed down until it was tightly packed on itself.

With an abrupt flare of energy, his eyes snapped open and he released the pressure within him, the shock travelling out and around him as his Haki ignited with him and forced its way out like an imaginary black tidal wave of fury and death.

Behind him, he heard the thumps of bodies hitting the floor as all of the Kali gang, even above him in the attic, he was able to hear another thump and the collapse of bones. The only few remaining concious being Robin, the Mugiwara's...and Sanji.

"I-Impossible." Sanji gasped, his cigarette nearly falling from his mouth. Spinning round to glare at Zoro in a rage, Sanji's visible eye widened as Zoro also turned and unsheathed a sword that no-one really ever saw unless Zoro intended to cause them a fate worse than agony. Placing Wado Ichimonji's pure white handle in his mouth, he withdrew the black cursed katana of Sandai Kitetsu, and the red hilted sword of Shusui, a blade once belonging to a powerful Samurai.

"Santoryuu." Zoro growled, his voice laced deep with danger.

Running forward, Sanji lashed out with multiple kicks in quick succession that Zoro blocked with the blunt edges of the katanas held in his hands. Gritting his teeth in building anger, Sanji jumped back a few steps before hurtling back in and going head-first into the battle once more.

"Toro Nagashi!" Zoro yelled, leaning towards Sanji and using using Kitetsu and Shusui to block Sanji's legs while he twisted his body around continuously, to avoid any of the leg attacks that managed to get past his swords. Within a few seconds, his head finally dipped in a quick slash with Wado. If Sanji hadn't noticed the slight strain in Zoro neck at that moment and disengaged the fight by air-hopping back quickly, he would have been cut deep across the stomach.

Zoro raised an eyebrow as Sanji air-hopped to the floor and re-lit his cigarette. "So you learnt to do your ballet in the heavens, eh?" He questioned, making Sanji grin as he calmly walked up to him.

Catching Zoro off guard, Sanji raised his leg up high and managed to hook his foot around Zoro's neck. "Reception!" He cried before the swordsman could respond, he brought his leg down hard, smashing Zoro into the floor at break-neck speed. Sanji watched as Zoro rolled to the side and stood up, spitting out splinters from where the wooden floor had cracked underneath him. Leaning down towards the floor, Sanji placed one hand on the floor and raised himself easily up onto it, holding himself sideways while facing Zoro, who was gathering himself.

Wasting no time he spun around rapidly on his hands and gained speed. As he did so, he quickly ran his hands over the wood and approached Zoro, delivering a kick into his side. "Concassé!" He shouted, coming upright and watching as Zoro was thrown to the side a little, only just managing to maintain his balance.

Not leaving any time for Zoro to prepare himself, Sanji turned his back to face Zoro and performed a series of fast back flips towards him. "Troisième Hachis!" Sanji yelled triumphantly, using his hands in a final powerful push, Sanji launched himself at Zoro and delivered several fast and painful kicks into the swordsman's chest, the final kick being so hard as to send Zoro flying backwards, narrowly missing Robin who was still strapped to her chair.

"Zoro!" She cried out of worry for him, struggling uselessly at her shackles.

Groaning, Zoro levered himself upright properly from where his back had made hard contact with the wall. Taking a deep breath, he grinned and his eyes flickered over to an astounded Sanji. "My turn...Ero-cook." He laughed menacingly.

Both Sanji and Robin blinked, unused to the sudden change in Zoro's behaviour. Above them in the attic, the Mugiwara's -who until then had been yelling at Zoro and trying to cheer him on- fell silent. Thatch's voice could be heard telling them to shuffle into a corner of the attic, and when Sabo asked him as to why Thatch's nervous voice replied with 'Zoro's about to get violent'.

"Tatsu..." Zoro started, spinning his swords around in his hands which created a powerful wind energy that caused Sanji to have to hold on tightly to his cigarette and to stay upright. "Maki!" He yelled, creating a dragon-like tornado that created a hole in the attic above him,, the circle of wood dropping down as he moved forwards, watching as Sanji was blown away from him, creating small lacerations all over the Kali gang leader's body at the same time.

Landing painfully on the floor a little way away from Zoro, Sanji rolled and stood up as Zoro closed in on him and began to slash at him. Using his black leg techniques, he spun on his leg as quickly as he could as he fell back a little under Zoro's incredible onslaught. "Diable Jambe...Premier Hachis!" Sanji hollered as he unleashed one of his most powerful techniques.

Taking a running jump, Sanji's leg caught fire in a pure white-hot flame. Kicking out with both of his legs, the rammed them into Zoro's stomach multiple times at great speed, the Diable Jambe causing burn damage to Zoro's stomach as well as partially burning away his black agent suit so that it resembled a charred mess.

In return, Sandai Kitetsu raised itself in the swordsman's hand, slashing horizontally across Sanji's breastplate. It did not go deep, and managed to only score him so that it caused him a sharp pain, although the blood quickly seeped out and was soaked up by his his smart shirt.

Zoro coughed around Wado Ichimonji's handle, and a little bit of blood dribbled out from the corner of his mouth. Sensing that he was quite possibly winning, Sanji smirked, stepping back a few paces from Zoro and starting to prepare yet another technique.

He slowly ground to a halt as he stared at the dark aura the was now able to be visibly seen as it surrounded Zoro, the aura resembling black tentacles or black licks of flame. "Kiki Kyutoryu." Zoro stated, his voice barely audible as he stood up straight and clenched his swords more tightly, their blades each pointing towards Sanji.

Both Sanji and Robin stared in disbelief as Zoro seemed to almost transform in front of them, gaining an extra two arms on each side and two extra heads so that his katanas totaled up to nine, all of them still pointing towards the Kali leader. "Asura Ichibugin." Zoro snarled, his eyes piercing as Zoro leapt at Sanji, powerfully slashing at him with all nine katanas at once. Sanji raised a leg, preparing to block the attack.

Robin's eyes widened at his strength as Zoro ended the move in a way in which all nine swords were held out like a fan, spreading out like a peacock's tail as fresh blood dripped down each of them.

The image of the demon Asura faded, leaving Zoro in his normal state with his three blood-soaked katanas. The two of which were in his hands now pointed towards the floor as Zoro relaxed his arms.

Behind him, a cigarette dropped to the floor, its end no longer lit. Sanji's visible eye was wide open in a mixture of surprise, fury, terror and agony. The nine deep cuts that lined his body were serious, and he collapsed painfully to his knees, screaming as they cracked upon meeting the floor and his whole body jolted in pain.

"You will haunt the streets of London no longer." Zoro stated, his voice flat.

"I-I-I...W-Will..." Sanji stuttered, the agony he felt hindering his speech as he felt his life force ebb away in every cut and laceration on his body that had been caused by the swordsman.

"What?" Zoro asked almost mockingly. "I know for a fact that you're going to die."

"N-N-Never...Forgive you..." Sanji completed, his eyes glazing over as he only just managed to turn his head to look at Zoro over his shoulder, Zoro mimicking the pose as the two rivals glanced at each other out of the corners of their eyes. "M...Marimo." He breathed, finally falling forwards and collapsing onto the wooden floor. Not breathing.

Grunting once in acknowledgement, Zoro looked up towards the hole in the ceiling and walked out of the room and clambered quickly up the ladder, each movement causing him pain in his stomach from Sanji's final Diable Jambe. Upon reaching the attic, he felt relief flood him as he saw his friends, each of them bearing new wounds from their torture, but otherwise alive.

"Zoro!" Luffy yelled happily, the others joining in with overjoyed, relieved laughter or happy crying as the Mugiwara leader sheathed all but Wado Ichimonji, using the katana to cut the crew out of their tightly bound ropes. At first, none of them could move due to having been tied up for so long which had made their limbs heavy and numb.

All except for Luffy, naturally, who merely bounced around happily and hugged everyone, especially Zoro. Ace merely shoved Luffy off when his brother hugged him for more than five seconds. "Yeah, ok Luffy, I've been close to you long enough, I don't need a hug as well." He snorted.

Nami moaned as Chopper helped her to roll her shoulders back and get used to motor control once more. "Nami..You'll be fine. You just need to keep moving your shoulders as much as you can for the next five minutes." Chopped nodded, in doctor mode as Nami smiled and thanked him gratefully as he blushed cutely and moved onto Sabo. "Praising me doesn't make me happy you bastard..." He gushed, trying not to laugh like a small child.

"Luffy, can you get us back down there?" Ussop questioned, pointing back to the floor below them as he nervously glanced through the hole that Zoro had made earlier with his Tatsu Maki whilst fighting Sanji.

Everyone suddenly sweatdropped, which then turned into a panic as Luffy laughed hysterically and stretched his arms out, grabbing everyone securely and jumping down the hole, dragging them all with him as he did so. There was a multitude of panicked yells as they fell, ending with mostly simultaneous 'oof's as they landed on a springy stretched out rubber Luffy underneath them, who was still laughing like he'd just heard the funniest joke in the world.

He stood up, only to have everyone's fists punch him in the head so that he was catapulted face first back into the floor. "NOT LIKE THAT LUFFY." They screamed/shouted/yelled at him.

Ace glanced to his left as there was a light groan from where the remaining Kali group members were still out cold on the floor. Marco was just starting to wake up, blinking his eyes and groaning as he tried to get his arms underneath him. Rubbing a clenched hand on his bare muscled abs in preparation, Ace allowed his hand to ignite and burst into a colour of orange flame. Judging the timing, he punched down hard on Marco's head with a well placed fist of fire that knocked him out once more, raising his aflame fist to his lips. With a sexy, boy-ish grin, he blew his index and middle fingers out like a gun.

Suddenly the sound of a horse neighing outside in warning and anger reached their ears, the horse clearly distressed as they caught sound of it rearing and slamming it's front two legs onto the cobbled stones.

Zoro took charge at once. "There'll be agents surrounding the area. I want you to get into the basement as fast and as carefully as you can and wait there. Whatever happens, don't get caught and don't try and come after me. Once everyone has gone, head back to base. Start re-claiming territory. Ok? I trust you guys." He ordered, breaking out into a knowing smirk. "You're my family."

They nodded in return, grins plastered over each of their faces as they hurried to do as they had been instructed. Each of them turning at the door to face the princess and bowing to her in respect as they left, either winking or grinning mischievously with a quick call of "Your majesty", making her smile back at them and dip her head in return.

"So those are your friends." She said after they had disappeared, waiting as Zoro forcefully broke her seastone shackles from her wrists, being as gentle as he could about it. Once removed, arms sprouted from the floor and chair as they helped her to swiftly release herself from her once tightly bound ropes.

"Mmm." Zoro nodded. "Are you ok?" He asked, carefully checking her over and wiping away most of the blood on her forehead that had matted into her raven coloured hair a little bit.

"I am after having seen you. My Knight in armour." Robin teased, making Zoro blush lightly as she kissed his cheek. "Thank you for saving me."

"Any time." He replies with a smirk.

"Are you going to be in trouble because you broke out to come and save me?" She questioned.

"Yes."

"How much?"

"A lot."

"How much is 'a lot'?"

"As in, my father is probably going kick my arse and you'll probably never see me again for the next...ohh I don't know...ten to twenty years? Ever?" He responded, the both of them listening to the thundering footsteps that now stormed up the stairs

Robin stared at him, unafraid. "...I still love you."

"And I you." Zoro replied, kissing her hand before letting it go and turning away taking three steps forward as the door burst open.

Shanks, Benn and Rayleigh marched in one behind another. Zoro stood his ground as Shanks strode towards him, the way he did so making Zoro think that the second in command was about to hit him. '_Here we go'. _He thought, waiting for the blow. Instead, he was shocked as the red-haired legend brushed past him, Benn and Rayleigh doing the same as Shanks attended to Princess Robin, whereas Rayleigh and Benn started to gather up the fallen Kali gang.

Rayleigh paused as he picked up Sanji's lifeless body, making Shanks momentarily turn towards him. Seeing the damage that had been wreaked on Sanji's body, Shanks stilled, and his hands paused in bathing Robin's brow of the blood. His eyes flickered to Zoro for no more than half a second before regaining focus on attending to the protesting Princess.

Meanwhile, Zoro felt thoroughly confused as to why Shanks had not started beating him up for having snuck out of MI5 headquarters. Then he heard another set of footsteps echoing down the corridor, and he resigned himself and sighed heavily as the final piece clicked into place.

Hawk-Eyes Mihawk entered swiftly with his black cape flying out behind him and his face one of cold fury as he grabbed Zoro by the collar with both hands and stared down into his son's face, the height advantage intimidating Zoro somewhat even though he bowed his head away and remained devoid of any emotion.

"What on earth do you think you're playing at_ boy_?" Mihawk asked icily. He didn't shout. He didn't need to. With that one question everyone felt the room temperature drop by about ten degrees as Mihawk's cold anger filled the room.

Refusing to say anything, Zoro kept his head bowed and his eyes trained on the floor.

"Answer me." Mihawk pressured, his grip tightening so much that it was sure to leave a crease in Zoro's already ruined black suit uniform.

Receiving no answer, Mihawk's yellow eyes flashed dangerously as he grabbed the scruff of Zoro's neck and started to roughly tow him down the stairs, Zoro starting to shout things 'get off of me' and 'leave me alone, I did what was right' as defiantly as he could, the old Zoro almost reinstalled into him by half, so much so that he felt able to challenge Mihawk verbally.

"Fine." Mihawk hissed as they arrived at the foyer and out through the building's double doors. "We'll do this the hard way."

With that, he mounted Salvatore in under a split second and hauled Zoro up to sit in front of him, effectively trapping him as Salvatore erupted straight into a gallop, Balthazar whinnying angrily as he sped after them.

* * *

_**I have to admit, when writing the bit in which Zoro reaches the 4th floor, I felt slightly intimidated by him. And I'm the author. =L I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck slowly stand on end.**_

_**I haven't done one of these in a while but I gave each section a scene name and said what song I listened to whilst writing it. If you know a few, cool. If you know all of them, YOU'RE (A wizard 'arry) AWESOME. So yeah, here:**_

_**Finding the building: SR-71 = Tomorrow/Goodbye.  
**_  
_**Enter and exchange:: Kid Cudi = Ruler and the killer./The black keys = Chop and change./Avenged Sevenfold = Nightmare.**_  
_**  
Haki: Avenged Sevenfold: So far away. (This song nearly made me cry whilst writing, because I related it to Zoro and imagined him singing it.)/A day to remember = You should have killed me when you had the chance.**_  
_**  
Fight for London: P!nk = Are we all we are/Fall Out Boy = This ain't a scene It's an arms race/ Black Sabbath = Paranoid.(Imagine playing this when Zoro says 'My turn'...You're welcome.);D**_  
_**  
Freedom and Love: Les Miserables = On my own/Florence and the machine = Heavy in your arms.**_  
_**  
Trouble: Kansas = Carry on my Wayward Son.**_

_**But yeah...Please review! ^^**_  
_**Kai XxxXxxX**_


	11. Chapter 11

**Black as Knight**

_**So I've been ill the past three days, and I PROMISED a reviewer that I'd update as soon as I could, so I used the time well and gave you guys a preeeetttyyy long chapter! :) 8788 words!**_

_**BEWARE THE TIMESKIPS. XD**_

**_Oh and Santoryuu3? Mihawk wants to say something..._**

**_Mihawk: Santoryuu. I see that you have become very confident with yourself if you think you may threaten to...'kick my ass if I keep screwing up the chemistry' between my son and the princess. Kindly rethink your words. I am as you say, a Master Swordsman. Choose your words carefully._**

**_...*Shrugs* He's being all touchy and grouchy again. Sorry about that. ;D_**

* * *

Mihawk all but threw Zoro into the interrogation room, setting Zoro slightly on edge as he fell forwards and stumbled, cursing aloud as he did so. Having closed the door behind him, Mihawk turned back to Zoro and stood in front of him, his yellow eyes glinting at Zoro in a blank expression that the teen knew all too well.

There was a silence in which neither of them said anything. Zoro's breathing was slightly staggered as he fought to control his anger, his stare murderous as he met Mihawks gaze, trying to read the man's face.

"Did you honestly think you could do this all by yourself?" Mihawk asked at length.

"Sneak out of MI5, beat up some guys and rescue a princess?...Like I just did?" Zoro retorted mockingly, his face sneering a little bit.

Mihawk's face didn't even twitch. "And so you find yourself back at square one, having disobeyed me yet again due to your moronic idiocy to try and foolishly prove that you're better than everyone else-"

"Because I am better than everyone else here, if you hadn't noticed-"

"Silence." Mihawk hissed, the first sign that he began to show of losing a grip on his temper.

"Or what?" Zoro questioned with a snort. "You gonna spank me?"

Mihawk raised an eyebrow in response. "Don't test me Roronoa. You know damned well I wouldn't hesitate." He threatened, watching as Zoro's only flinch was to angrily clench his jaw. "But that's beside the point. The question is, how to deal with you."

"What do you mean, how do deal with me? !" Zoro exploded. "I SAVED her. I did my DUTY. By what account was I in the fucking wro-"

"Watch your tongue boy." Mihawk snapped. "If you had contacted us and let us deal with the situation we could ha-"

"SHE WOULD HAVE FUCKING DIED." Zoro roared, pointing a finger towards the door as he continued. "OUT THERE, I KNOW THE STREETS AND I KNOW THE PEOPLE. I KNEW WHO HAD TAKEN HER AND WAS ABLE TO GET THERE AND DEAL WITH IT MYSELF! YOU WOULD HAVE TAKEN AT LEAST HALF THE DAY TO FIND HER WHEREAS IT ONLY TOOK ME A FEW HOURS."

"Do not raise your voice to me!" Mihawk finally shouted, his eyes narrowing at his son.

"I'm not a child. And I proved that when I brought Robin back. _Safely_." Zoro growled.

Mihawk shook his head. "You proved nothing. In fact your proved the exact opposite. You were told to stay away from the princess and you deliberately ignored me. Now you will pay the consequences of your actions."

Rubbing a hand down his face in exasperation, Zoro groaned out loud. "You have got to be kidding me...are you seriously this blind? Can you not see that I've actually done you all a fucking favo-"

He was cut off as Mihawk harshly cuffed him around the head, making Zoro hiss and clutch at the spot. "I warned you about your language boy." Mihawk reprimanded, his face having regained its usual blank look that concealed the fury within.

"Yeah, I warned myself about _you _a long time ago." Zoro replied sarcastically.

"You dare to take a sarcastic voice with me?" Mihawk questioned, his voice laced with danger.

"You know what sarcasm is?" Zoro shot back, feigning mock surprise.

Mihawk grabbed the scruff of Zoro's neck just as the door exploded inwards to reveal Princess Robin running in with the sound of Shanks and Rayleigh's footsteps not far behind. For that split second, Mihawk's hand relaxed enough for Zoro to pull up out of his grip, the both of them staring at her.

"M'sorry sir. She's quick and we didn't get her into contact with seastone fast enough, and she wouldn't take no for an answer." Shanks apologised.

"Get out." Mihawk instructed the three new comers, reaching for Zoro yet again.

Instead, Robin stepped in front of Zoro, putting herself between father and son as she shielded Zoro with her body. "Don't touch him so harshly." Robin ordered, her eyes firm as she stared at Mihawk defiantly. "He saved my life...He should be praised, not punished."

"Praise is not in order my lady." Mihawk responded, watching as Zoro stared at her in astonishment, unsuccessfully trying to put her behind _him _for her own safety.

"He saved my _life_." Robin protested firmly.

"He disobeyed an order." Mihawk replied stoically, taking in her appearance of the torn dress and faint bruising appearing on her once delicate skin, which had been gently cleaned of blood to reveal the slight raw skin surrounding the cuts that had not yet finished being attended to.

"It's better to asked forgiveness than permission." Robin stated in a voice nearly akin to a whisper, her breathing quiet but heavy. Zoro eyes found hers as she turned to look at him. "And I love him." She said a little more calmly. "I don't care if I'm royal. I'm still a person, and I would give up my title so that I can marry this man." She said quietly, taking his hands momentarily.

The tense feeling increased as Robin dropped Zoro's rough hands and instead gently used them to cup both of his cheeks as he allowed her lips to brush his own, not denying her when she increased the pressure into a proper kiss that he returned, ignoring the other three agents around them.

Zoro felt his heart flare up in his chest, something that he had never truly felt before. He'd never believed in love, having seen it only as a weakness. His love for his gang was something quite different to what he was feeling now. This was a love so powerful that he could feel it taking over his senses.

Evidently feeling the same, Robin sank into the moment as she lightly brushed her hand over his jawline simultaneously. When they finally broke apart, the both of them pressed their foreheads together, regaining their breath a little.

"What are you?" Zoro asked quietly, feeling strangely intrigued by the woman in front of him.

"Just a life that's trying to heal a broken heart with all that it can." Robin replied, smiling softly.

Zoro breathed out a tiny laugh, the first real smile that Rayleigh had seen on the boy's face for a long time. "So I'm broken, huh?"

"This has gone far enough." Mihawk's voice cut in coldly. "Rayleigh. Take the princess back to the palace immediately. Roronoa is to be cut off from his royal duties altogether and will join the others in staying to the streets of London. Shanks, you are to be responsible for Zoro whilst out on these missions. Am I clear?" He ordered, his tone clipped and to the point.

Shanks and Rayleigh nodded their heads once. "Sir."

Robin struggled against Rayleigh as he picked her up bridal style and hurried out of the door with her, his seastone ring coming into contact with her leg so that she was unable to use her powers to escape. She called back for Zoro, who answered her by yelling her name and thrashing against Shanks as the red-haired agent grabbed him by the shoulders. One of his elbows nearly hit Shanks in the jaw, but the second in command was sensible enough to keep his head out of range.

"Kid, stop it." Shanks grunted as Zoro's elbow finally managed to get him in the gut. Resorting to forcefully removing the green-haired teen, he dragged and hauled the frenzied boy into room 221b, shutting the door behind him after having shoved him inside.

"_Why god damn it?_" Zoro yelled, running a hand through his hair in desperate frustration.

"Zoro." Shanks said, walking over to him.

"I let her slip through my fingers again and damn it I'm such a fucking idio-"

"_Zoro._" Shanks' authorative voice stopped him, his hands finding the boy's shoulders and shaking them a little bit. "There's nothing you can do. You did your best."

"And I've probably broken her heart!" Zoro shouted, throwing his head back to look at the ceiling.

"You saved her though. And you killed the leader of the gang holding her hostage, and knocked out the rest of his gang which are going to be interrogated and imprisoned in a prison on the very outskirts of London."

Zoro laughed shortly, no humour in it. "Sanji had it coming to him. He'd killed more innocent people than I had, and he was a cocky son of a bitch. But I don't _care _about that. Robin's heart is going to..." He trailed off, unable to complete the sentence.

Shanks sighed. "Look, it's ok-"

"Noooo_oooo_! It's _NOT OK_." Zoro yelled, starting to lose it a little.

Shanks fell silent, allowing the teenager time to collect his thoughts and rant in his head. After what seemed to be about ten minutes, Zoro's tense shoulders finally sagged in tiredness. "What the fuck do I do?" He asked quietly.

"Follow orders." Shanks replied, patting his shoulder and leaving.

* * *

MI5 life after that settled down somewhat. Zoro barely spoke unless it was to Rayleigh or Shanks, and even then he said little. To Coby or Garp, there wasn't a word spoken between them, no matter how much Coby tried to start a conversation, or just chatted to him anyway, filling him in on gossip that was going around MI5 or London.

If Robin was mentioned, Zoro said nothing, but he would get up and leave. As for Mihawk, Zoro avoided him like the plague, not wanting to have a confrontation in the fear that it would only take one look from the man, and Zoro would draw his swords in an all-out battle.

Missions weren't too bad, seeing as when he ventured out on the streets astride Balthazar, he would talk to the horse like he would a friend. Not only that, but the people all over London had claimed him as the gang king of London, praising him for having defeated Sanji.

If with others, the people tended to back off slightly or glance at him in awe from a distance. Rayleigh noticed this, and Zoro clenched his teeth the moment someone uttered the word 'hero' in relation to him. He could always make out the faint growl of '_I'm not a hero you fucking idiot'_.

It was a bleak day in June when Zoro caught up to the recent news that had sprung up in MI5. After four months, one of the Kali group had finally talked. This would have been just general news to Zoro that he wouldn't have cared about, but something unnerved him about it. It was the fact that Coby had told him that the former gang member had talked _willingly_.

It was this that drove him to finally return the conversation.

"What do you mean, willingly? Who was it?" Zoro asked, making Coby jump in his seat in surprise from where they were sat next to one another in the common room by the fire, Zoro with his hand resting on the katanas that were always by side.

"Z-Zoro.." Coby stuttered, astonished that the teenager was even talking to him. Zoro raised an eyebrow to signal that he was waiting for an answer. "It was that guy with the flame-like hair. Eustass Kidd? Or something like that. He said something about this other gang that were rising up and getting ready to kill masses of Londoners, and he said he knew where their base was."

"Oh yeah?" Zoro grunted, starting to wonder who this new gang was.

"Aa, apparently Mihawk-sama is gathering some of the strongest agents. They will have headed out about five minutes ago to go and arrest them."

"Where is it they're headed? Did Kidd give them an address?"

Coby nodded. "The warehouse down in One Piece avenue."

Like an electric current running through his body, Zoro felt his blood run cold as his whole body froze in shock. Casting a worried look at him, Coby leant forwards in his chair and furrowed his eyebrows. "Zoro...Are you ok?" He asked nervously.

"Fuck." Was the only word that left Zoro's mouth, the one word that coursed through his body and motivated him to get up from his chair and dart down the corridor, Coby's panicked shouting echoing behind him as he heard the pink-haired boy start to run after him, telling him to wait.

His heart pounded in a panic as he ran, his jaw tightening as he ran in his black suit uniform that had long since been renewed after the battle with Sanji. He kept running until he was outside, stumbling his way over the cobbles into the stables and to the very back of the aisle, fumbling with the bolt lock of Balthazar's stall.

Finally managing to let himself in, he ignored the sounds of Coby's faint shouting as he heaved the saddle onto Balthazar's unsuspecting back and hurriedly fastening the clips and straps with practised ease, doing the same for the bridle before swiftly swinging himself up into the saddle and digging his heels in unnecessarily hard, making Balthazar rear up a little and punch out at the air with his hooves before landing and burst forward out of his stall.

At the far end of the stables, Coby had just entered with a slight panting. But as he saw Balthazar start to charge at him, he froze in fear and yelled out as the horse drew closer, turning around and crouching as he put his hands protectively over his head. In the moment in which Coby should have been crushed, Balthazar 's front legs lifted up into the air in what seemed like slow motion, his hind legs pushing his entire weight plus his master's weight off of the ground and carrying them both safely over the boy until they landed on the other side of him and galloped straight off into the streets of London, Coby staring after them in shock.

Balthazar's ears flicked back as Zoro drove his heels into him even more, forcing his legs to move even faster as he extended his gait into a full gallop as they charged through the streets. "Come on Balthazar, we've got to go faster. If we don't, I might not get there in time." Zoro shouted over the wind.

In response, Balthazar tossed his neck so that his now long, not-yet-cut mane nearly thwacked Zoro in the face as if to say '_I can barely go much faster!_'.

In the streets people looked up at him with scared faces, telling him that the agents had already passed that way. He face grim, he turned the horse down the final few streets until they passed the sign reading 'One Piece Avenue' up on the wall on the corner of the street in black and white. Zoro inwardly groaned when he saw the mass of horses patiently standing outside in the street next to an extremely familiar warehouse. From the horses alone, he knew that his gang had a problem on their hands with Mihawk, Shanks, Benn, Whitebeard, Kizaru and Kuro grabbing them out of the base any moment now.

Muttering under his breath, Zoro slid out of the saddle and dropped to the cobble stones, racing across them and quietly squeezing through the crack that had been left in the open door of the warehouse.

Risking a glance towards the lighter area of the warehouse, he witnessed Sabo being hauled out of the vent and dragged across the floor by Kuro to stand in front of Mihawk next to all the other gang members who were also in the exact same position with an agent stood behind them. None of his friends looked at either the head agent or each other, and instead kept their eyes trained on the floor.

"Wondering how we found you I suspect." Mihawk's cold voice floated around the echoing warehouse. "One of our hostages from what they called a 'rival gang' passed your location on to us."

"What do you want?" Ace questioned, his voice full of anger that stayed firm even as Whitebeard shoved him hard enough so that he stumbled forwards a little bit.

"Justice." Mihawk replied simply. "You are a gang, and are therefore dangerous to the citizens of London. You are to be removed from here and imprisoned until-"

Thatch looked up at that moment and met Mihawk's cold stare. "Like hell we will old man." He growled. "You're gonna imprison us? We sure as hell won't go quietly. We're waiting on a promise."

The only response that Mihawk gave was the arm that shot out from underneath the cape and grabbed Thatch around the neck and gripped it tight, making the other Mugiwara's have to be held back as they shouted and tried to pull forwards to help the cook.

Zoro's temper flared in a moment of anger, and he surged forwards from the shadows towards Mihawk. *With great impact, Zoro collided with the master swordsman and wrenched his grip away from Thatch's neck who gasped in pain, watching in shock along with everyone else as Zoro tackled Mihawk to the ground with an angry wordless roar.

Everyone stilled and watched as Mihawk managed to untangle himself from his son and throw him to the side, the both of them swiftly standing up, Mihawk managing to do so somewhat gracefully. He whipped around in fury and grabbed Zoro's wrist, twisting it painfully and turning so that it was pushed up into an uncomfortable and slightly painful arm lock which made Zoro curse colourfully.

Ignoring his son for the second, Mihawk turned to the stunned agents. "Search them." He ordered, not bothering to check to see whether the order was carried out as he turned back to Zoro.

"What the _bloody hell _do you think you're doing?" He hissed.

Zoro swallowed, having realised that he didn't exactly think this through. "O-Oi, I know this looks bad."

"This looks bad? Barging in on a mission as important as this. Do you _want _me to have to-"

"Sir." Kuro's voice called out. "I've found something on the girl."

Everyone watched as Mihawk stopped and let go of Zoro's arm, who gave out a tiny 'ah' as he felt the blood circulate properly through his veins once more, his arm already suffering from a slight case of pins and needles. He too watched as Mihawk extended his hand to have Kuro press something rectangular and plastic into his hand. Mihawk studied it expressionlessly for a moment before he froze.

Frowning in confusion, Zoro tilted his head upwards a little and dispelled the light's earlier reflection on the object. His eyes closed and he scowled for barely half a second as he saw what the object was. '_Uh-fucking-oh.' _He sighed mentally, licking his lips once in anticipation of what was about to come next.

"How did you come by this?" Mihawk's quiet voice asked, having walked over and stopped in front of Nami. Nami's eyes went wide as she trembled slightly, unable to make any sound come out of her mouth.

Zoro stared at Nami as she quaked in fear, and he felt bad for their sister. "Mihawk." He called quietly, trying to gain the man's attention.

"Answer me." Mihawk ordered more firmly, his eyes dangerously glittering yellow.

"_Mihawk_." Zoro tried again, only to be ignored once more.

"How did you get this?" Mihawk repeated in almost a hiss.

"_Father._" Zoro finally managed to bite out, the word tasting disgusting in his mouth. He could feel his gang staring at him in shock at the word, save for Thatch, and he remembered that this little bit of information was new to them.

However it seemed to do the trick, as Mihawk stiffened and turned to Zoro, his eyes piercing him to the very core. "Speak." He commanded, acknowledging his son at last and giving him his brief attention.

"I gave it to her." Zoro admitted. "I was the leader of this gang before you caught me and dragged me off the streets. I gave it to them to make sure they would be able to get by ok, as I didn't really have much need of it."

There was a silence, in which Zoro noticed the way that Whitebeard raised an eyebrow, Shanks smirked slightly and Mihawk merely pinched the bridge of his nose in irritation. "No matter. They are also no longer in need of it." He said at length. "They are to be henceforth imprisoned with those of the Kali gang and-"

"No." Zoro stated. "I know them well,-"

"Zoro." Mihawk started, his tone weary.

"-they are good people and are strong in their own right." Zoro continued heedlessly.

"Zoro." Mihawk tried again more sternly.

"If you allow them to join the MI5 they would be a valuable addition to help-"

"_Roronoa._" Mihawk snapped icily. "Stay your tongue and know your place."

"If you put them away, you put me with them." Zoro spat after a moment.

Mihawk glanced at the ceiling, as though praying to god to send him patience. "Fine...Fine they may become agents. But even a step out of line, and they will face the consequences. Understood?" He threatened.

"Yes sir." Zoro nodded, gritting his teeth and glancing at his gang who stared at him wide-eyed, only grinning to themselves when he winked to them secretly.

"Back to headquarters." Mihawk instructed, his tone betraying his annoyance. "Immediately."

* * *

During the training of the Mugiwara's, Zoro found himself relaxing. Having emptied the Thousand Sunny of everything that they would need, the Mugiwara gang had been stationed in the same corridor as Zoro and Coby, and after much bargaining with Shanks, Nami had managed to get her way into owning the largest room at the bottom of the corridor.

It was a large lifestyle change for them, and they were hesitant at first. But after a while they started to settle down into the routine of MI5 life. The three who had training of a different kind to the most of the group, were Nami, Chopper and Thatch, who decided to specialise.

After having spent time talking to Shanks, the second in command had quickly come to the conclusion that the girl was able to read and write just that tiny bit better than the others, and that her knowledge of the streets around London was absolutely perfect, having an almost photographic memory of a map of the city inside her head. He took her straight under his wing and began to teach her the secret ways through London that were often used for searching out bomb threats or other such scenarios that were potentially dangerous.

Despite having been wary of the red-haired legend at first, Nami had quickly grown attached to her teacher and almost ran to her lessons with him, excited to learn more.

Chopper spent his training with Aokiji and a female MI5 doctor by the name of Doctorine, whose knowledge of medicines was actually somewhat impressive, despite her fearsome nature as a crazy old woman. Chopper soon became used to her shouting and abrupt mood swings, and he swiftly learnt not to call her 'old'. Aokiji only intervened when he had something important to add, and there were times when he took the young reindeer out onto the streets of London and into places such as Bartholomew's hospital, where the reindeer would test what he had learned.

Thatch however, had not needed a tutor of any kind. He was his own tutor in cooking, because he claimed that 'the learning was all in the experimenting'. It was this motto that had him swiftly promoted to head chef in MI5, serving everyone's meals on a daily basis. He became rather good friends with a lot of the older, higher up agents due to it too. As a lot of them (specifically Shanks, Yassop, Benn, Kizaru, Rayleigh and even Aokiji on occasion) had the nerve to come back and ask for more.

Which was better than Luffy and Ace's way of asking for more, which was to roar it out over the whole canteen, only to receive a ladle in the forehead which had been accurately thrown from the kitchens. Sometimes with seconds being brought out, if he was feeling nice.

The rest of the Mugiwara's picked an agent to train with.

For Ace, he was deliberating over it when he literally ran into one of the agents in the corridor, his whole body catching alight on instinct. With an insanely loud guffaw of laughter, Ace had looked up to see a giant of a man standing before him with a ridiculous white moustache.

The laugh had irritated him, and he had challenged him to a fight in the gym. Which after about a minute, he had lost. It was after about the one hundredth or so time of being beaten that he had finally asked the man's name.

"Lad, my name is Edward Newgate. But most people around here know me as Whitebeard." The man had boomed. "And would I be right in thinking that you are Portgas D. Ace? Son of Gol D. Roger, the former gang king?"

"Aa." Ace had answered.

Whitebeard had nodded, a grin lighting up his face. "Kid, I will teach you to fight properly. Maybe that way you'll actually last more than five minutes against me."

Meanwhile, Ace's brother Luffy had chosen Shanks, whilst Garp had also chosen to teach him. Together, both Akagami and Garp tutored Luffy in using his skills as a devil fruit user, and as they later found out, a special Haki user. Luffy was more relaxed around Shanks than he was with Garp, seeing as he thought of Shanks as a hilarious friend, and Garp as his scary and crazy grandfather. Yet by both of their skills as agents, Luffy's strength dramatically improved.

Sabo, the youngest of them all, had not known quite what to do. He was considered by most of the agents far too young to teach, and it annoyed him greatly. When alone in the gym, he took several minutes to set up a punching bag before taking his metal pipe in his hands and going at it like a wild thing for several hours, beating it to a pulp before dealing it a death blow which ripped it open, spilling the sand from the bag onto the floor.

A round of applause made him jump in terror and spin to face the intruder with his pipe held out in front of him protectively. But he lowered it when Rayleigh walked into the room, gazing at him with impressed eyes.

"You have heart...and determination." The older man commented. Unsure of what to say in response, Sabo merely blinked a few times and felt his cheeks turn pink with embarrassment. "But surely you are too young to train?"

At this, Sabo scowled and found his tongue. "I want to learn to fight!" He protested, his hand clenching around the pipe.

"Why?" Rayleigh asked, a slight shrug following the question.

"Huh?" Sabo questioned cleverly.

"Why do you want to learn to fight?" Rayleigh repeated.

Sabo didn't even have to think about his reply, it came so naturally. "So that I can protect my friends!"

Nodding, Rayleigh grinned, the gym lights reflecting in his glasses a little bit. "Well said kid, well said...In that case, you have found yourself a teacher."

"R-Really?" Sabo gaped, his eyes wide in astonishment.

"Indeed. But do not think I will go easy on you. The training will be rough, but I will teach you everything I can and everything that I think you will need to know. Are you positive you want to do this?"

"Yes...Yes sir!" Sabo smiled, excitement alive in his eyes.

"Very well then." Rayleigh smiled back.

Ussop, however, did not really have much of a choice. Whilst sitting in the common room with Zoro, his father Yassop ran in from the corridor and hugged him upon sight, claiming to want to know everything about him and his own hand-made weapon, to see if together they could help to improve it and improve Ussop's sniper skill.

As much as he might have once hated his dad, at that moment Ussop felt it all wash away, wanting only to spend time getting to know the man and perhaps even build up something of a family relationship. His father actually cared, and that was all he needed to hear.

Sometimes, Nami would join Ussop and Yassop so that the three of them would talk about improving her Climatact and its uses and attacks.

Watching them all as they progressed, Zoro felt proud for having made the head agent change his mind about their original fate. It had worked out for the best, for all of them. And it was something that Zoro wouldn't let him forget in a hurry.

Also during this time, Zoro got a somewhat pleasant surprise one day on November the eleventh. A date that he had completely forgotten about until Sabo and Luffy crept into his room that morning and jumped on him whilst he was still in bed at eight o'clock in the morning, yelling at him to wake up and get dressed.

Reluctantly he had done so after having quickly showered, allowing the two excited younger guys to lead him out into the surprisingly warm corridor whilst he grumbled to them about having woken him up so rudely. But he was surprised to see a large layout of breakfast food set up in the middle of their common room and the fire already going in an attempt to heat it up, giving the place a much friendlier look.

Not only that but his whole gang was there, including Shanks and Rayleigh, which was kind of odd. "Ehh? Guys, what the hell's going on?" He questioned as he allowed Luffy to push him into one of the chairs.

"See, I told you." Nami laughed.

"Only a true marimo would forget his own eighteenth birthday." Ussop agreed with a snigger.

Zoro raised his eyebrows as it clicked into place. He had forgotten that today was his birthday, seeing as he never normally remembered it anyway, it didn't really bother him. Besides, it was only ever one day of the year.

"Dude, want to open your presents?" Ace grinned, nudging Luffy who stretched his arm back behind the chair that they were both sat on and brought forth a couple of (badly wrapped) presents.

"You guys actually got me presents?" Zoro asked in surprise, accepting the packages from Luffy's excited hands.

"Well duh! You're our leader, and it's your birthday!" Sabo nodded with a smile as he sat at Zoro's feet next to the fire. Zoro chuckled and began opening them, amusing them all as he managed to hit Shanks in the face with an accurate, sneakily thrown scrunched up piece of wrapping paper.

"I'll get you back for that Zoro!" Shanks laughed, shaking a fist at him jokingly and making the teen grin.

Zoro held up the bottle of sake to Ace and nodded to him with a smirk. "Thank you Ace. I know exactly where that's going." He said, the both of them laughing. Luffy's one made his heart seem to swell up in friendship as he held the piece of familiar dark green cloth in his hands. "Luffy..."

"I figured you'd probably want it back, 'cause you'd left it on the Sunny when you first left and we didn't get a chance to give it to you." Luffy shrugged with a grin as he watched Zoro tie the dark green bandanna in its rightful place around his upper arm.

"Thanks Luffy." Zoro nodded, feeling the bandanna fill in something he felt he'd been missing for a long time.

"Oi, Zoro. Catch." Thatch called, tossing something at Zoro who caught it easily. They smirked at one another as Zoro nodded to him and placed the bottle of sake down beside Ace's bottle.

Shanks laughed suddenly. "If you're all giving him the booze now, then I'd best join in." He said, handing over a sake bottle shaped present. "That one's from me and the guys at MI5." He added.

Suddenly a flash of pink darted into the common room breathlessly. "Wait! You haven't finished have you? I wanted to give this one to you Zoro before I have to ride for the palace." Coby all but shouted, having run down the corridor from the room adjacent to Zoro's own. Upon saying this, he handed over a present wrapped in the shape of a horse's hoof.

Luffy glanced at it curiously. "Hey, what is that?"

"We don't know yet idiot." Ace sniggered, watching as Luffy hummed thoughtfully.

"So...it's a mystery present!"

"...You are _so _weird."

Strangely, the present was soft to the touch and upon opening it, Zoro chuckled as he prodded the soft white neck pillow.

"You know you're never gonna see me awake ever again with this, don't you?" He warned, making Coby grin in return with a shrug that made his pink bubblegum hair flick about his shoulders.

"You never concentrated anyway." He reasoned with a laugh.

Nami then piped up from her chair. "For my present, you've kind of got two." She confessed. "For starters, I'm going to cut you free from all your debts to me-". There was a whistle of disbelief from Ussop who was sat next to her, and a gasp of shock from Chopper. Ace merely grumbled 'lucky git' under his breath. "And here. I didn't wrap it." She said, handing him a small disk.

Leaning forwards slightly, they all started laughing as Zoro's face grew red a little, not being able to help the small smirk that appeared on his face as he glanced at the compass in his hand. "Thanks Nami." He chuckled.

"Well, it's just...you are _seriously _directionally challenged. So I thought this might help." She giggled, watching as Ussop, Sabo and Chopper gave him three tiny presents each.

Curious, Zoro opened them and noted the small rings that were just about the width of the scabbards of his swords. "What are they?" He questioned, holding them up so that he could see them better.

Ussop rubbed the length of his long nose proudly. "This was my invention." He stated. "They're locks for your katana sheaths, and they're sensitive to only your fingerprints, meaning that only you can unsheath them. Good, ne? Took me a while to get the dimensions right because I could only measure the scabbard widths when you weren't looking."

Taking up his three katanas, Zoro found with surprise that the sniper had got the dimensions perfectly for each sword, and as he clicked the locks on he slid the katanas back into their sheaths. Extending the handle of Kitetsu to Thatch, the cook obliged a little warily, knowing of the sword's curse. However, the sword could not be unsheathed. Until Zoro tried. True to Ussop's word, the katana clicked free of the lock and slowly rose as Zoro unsheathed it halfway with a quiet hiss of metal.

"Ussop, this is amazing." Zoro said, marvelling at the invention with a grin. "Thank you."

Ussop puffed his chest out. "Well what do you expect from a genius like me? I am the great, CAPTAIN USSOP!" He cried, standing atop the chair and pulling a heroic pose to Luffy and Chopper's cheering.

Smoothly intervening, Rayleigh handed Zoro a small box and tucked a note into the teenager's sleeve which Zoro pretended not to notice. "This one is from someone who could not be here. I advise that you open it later." He smiled, nodding to the cute little box.

Knowing what Rayleigh meant, Zoro nodded and carefully tucked the box into his suit's inside pocket. "Anyway, are we gonna get to eat this food?" Zoro asked with a raised eyebrow in Thatch's direction.

"Yeah, and you better eat up." Thatch warned him. "I made sure I used all the stuff you like."

Zoro grinned. "As long as the two bottomless pits don't get there first, sure."

"Don't even tempt fate." Thatch groaned comically, making them all laugh as everyone dived for the table of food simultaneously in an attempt to block Luffy and Ace from it.

The day wore on with most people having to get back to training or missions, but Zoro's afternoon was free, and it was this time that he took to drinke most his booze for a few hours before deciding retire to his room for the evening to see what Rayleigh had given him earlier that morning.

Taking the little note out, he read Rayleigh's scrawl that was written across it.

'_Zoro,_

_Come and see Roger this evening. He and I have a present to give you,_

_Rayleigh._'

Grinning to himself, he tore the note into tiny little pieces and threw them into the bin so that no one else would read it. Then he took the small box out from the pocket on the inside of his suit. He stared at it for a moment before carefully lifting the lid, just catching the small note that had been attached to the top of the lid before it fell out.

It read in a beautifully neat calligraphy:

'_Kenshi-san,_

_I heard that you were to turn another year older today, so I had this specially made a few weeks ago. Happy Birthday my dearest Knight._

_All my love,_

_Robin.'_

Smiling to himself, he put the lid and note aside and opened the box. At first he was confused to see nothing inside the box, but he jumped a little as a small hand grew from the bottom of the box, the fingers gently closed around something. Carefully, he traced a finger down the wrist, watching with interest as the hand slowly unfolded like a blooming flower.

Nestled on the palm, was a small golden band that glittered in the light. Intrigued, Zoro cautiously picked it up and examined it in his hand. It was light as metal went, and it was definitely not a girl's piece of jewellery. Twisting it round , he noticed the inscription that was written on the inside of the ring, making the corner of his lips twitch up into a smirk.

'_Love at first Knight_'.

Slipping it on, he found that it fit perfectly, and it didn't come off quite as easily which was practical. Leaving the box on the bedside table next to a half empty -or half full, he didn't care which- bottle of sake, he stood up and headed down the now familiar corridors until he came to the staircase which lead him down to the holding cell, the wooden cross still inside.

But ignoring the cell, he turned to the final flight of stairs that still had a rope across it with the sign reading 'Authorised Personnel Only'.

He was about to go for the lantern that was usually unlit on the wall, only to find that the lantern wasn't there. But looking down the stairs, he could see a faint glow of light and warmth which told him that Rayleigh was already down there waiting for him with Roger. Stepping over the rope his quickly made his way down the stairs.

Upon hearing the boy enter the prison, both Rayleigh and Roger turned to him with a smile, having obviously just been conversing about something or other. "Happy Halloween kid!" Roger laughed. "Oops wrong one. That's just the atmosphere in here. Happy birthday Zoro."

Grinning, Zoro laughed a little too. "Heh, thanks Roger."

Roger nudged Rayleigh as much as he could through the bars. "Go on then, give it to him!" He encouraged, seeming to be a little over-excited, which made Zoro see why Ace and Luffy were related to him.

"Alright, alright. Hang on a second." Rayleigh said, rolling his eyes. "It's not wrapped." He apologised.

"It doesn't need to be." Roger argued.

"Well, seeing as it's a present, it's _supposed _to be." Rayleigh pointed out.

"I beg to differ." Roger scoffed.

"Beg then." Rayleigh responded in conclusion, making Roger growl out '_mutiny_' under his breath with a fake pout that disappeared as Rayleigh finally handed something large and somewhat square into Zoro's hands.

Zoro frowned at it in confusion for a moment. "What..What is it?" He asked, glancing at the two of them who looked insanely proud.

"Open it up and see for yourself." Rayleigh suggested with a shrug and a grin.

"It's pretty big we know, and we only managed to fill about a third of it. Maybe a little bit under." Roger rushed as Zoro shifted what he now realised was a large old dark brown leather book in his hands and opened it up to the first page.

His head shot up to stare at them. "Is this for real?" He laughed nervously. "You're _giving _me this?" At Roger and Rayleigh's answering nods, his laugh became slightly breathless. "You've gotta be kidding me...All your adventures. Your close calls with MI5. Your base of operations-You've listed everything in here!"

"T'is our official logbook. On page thirty-six -at least I think it's thirty-six -you'll find the names of the whole gang which signed the whole damn page. My signature is in the centre, naturally." Roger stated proudly as Zoro leafed through the book, his eyes wide in wonder.

"Yeah, nearly took up half the damn page so that the rest of us had to write small." Rayleigh snorted.

"Did not."

"Did too."

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did not slander and calumny!" Roger concluded with a smirk.

Zoro looked towards them with a grin. "You...Thank you. So much." He thanked them, unable to think of any other words in which he could express his gratitude.

"Our adventures aren't the best part though." Rayleigh said, the light from the lantern reflected in his glasses for a moment.

"Eh?" Zoro questioned, raising an eyebrow.

Roger grinned at him. "You've got enough space to fill in your own." He explained. "Rayleigh's told me that your gang got brought here too, so the lot of you can put your heads together and figure out your timelines. Besides, for Rayleigh and I, our era is way over. Yours kid...Yours is just beginning." He winked.

Closing the book, Zoro nodded. "Then it'll be put to good use." He told them, feeling proud to have been given such a valuable gift. He was pretty sure that not even Ace would have seen this, and he couldn't wait to show the rest of the Mugiwara's.

Rayleigh suddenly narrowed his eyes. "Kid, I get the feeling you should be going right about now.." He said slowly, making Roger focus as though he was listening.

"Aye...I sense it too. You've got less than two minutes to get up to your common room before he gets there." Roger agreed seriously.

"He?" Zoro asked in confusion, furrowing his eyebrows as he held the book tightly under one arm. "What do you mean?"

"Your room is about to get an unexpected party." Rayleigh informed him.

For a second Zoro stood there, and then realisation kicked in. Shouting a 'thanks' over his shoulder, he sprinted up both sets of stairs with the book safely under arm, nearly slamming into a wall as he accidentally took a wrong turn down a dead end corridor in his haste.

Cursing, he corrected his course and headed to the common room, concealing the large book craftily in the metal structure underneath his the common room chair that he claimed as 'his'. Straightening up, he smoothed himself down and calmly walked the corridor to room 221b.

Just as he went to open it, it opened inwards for him to reveal the MI5 head agent standing in the doorway, having been about to make his way out. Zoro narrowed his eyes at him. "How the fuck did you get in here?"

"Your knowledge of lock picking is obviously lacking." Came the response as Mihawk held up a misshapen piece of metal that had once been a paper clip. Zoro sighed and shook his head tiredly.

"Whatever." He muttered, moving backwards and allowing Mihawk out.

As Mihawk stepped into the corridor, he rested a hand on Zoro's shoulder, making him freeze momentarily. It lasted for no more than two seconds, as Mihawk merely let his hand fall from Zoro's shoulder as he walked away calmly back down the corridor and out of sight.

Thoroughly confused as to what that had been about, Zoro decided to shrug it off and walked into his room, grabbing his unfinished bottle of sake. That was when he noticed the long polished wooden box that was laid delicately on his bed.

Curiously, he sipped his sake before returning it to the table, sitting on his bed and reaching for the box. On the box he could make out the silver inscription above the obviously recent ornate carving of three intersecting swords.

'_Aut inveniam viam aut faciam_'.

Remembering lessons from long ago, he quickly translated it in his head, only to receive a flashback of a woman, whose face he couldn't make out as he looked up at her through his minds eye whilst she looked at his father's agonised face, feeling himself being passed over to his father. A soft voice, one so calm and yet laced with terror speaking those exact words before turning and leaving with Mihawk's arms cradling him as he ran .

The flashback felt weird, and it was then that he realised that it was his earliest memory...and the only one he had left of his mother.

"_Aut inveniam viam aut faciam_...I shall either find a way or make one." He whispered, taking the box in trembling hands and gingerly lifting the lid. Despite himself, he laughed softly when he saw the contents.

A small stack of nuguigami, the wiping papers that was made of a soft, sensitive pulp tissue, used for wiping off the excessive oil and unnecessary dust from the katana. A general flannel like cloth that was generally used for quick cleaning to wipe debris and residue from the blade after use. Choji oil, the rust preventive oil. The oiling cloth, which was used to apply a coating of choji oil to the blade, and the Uchiko ball, finely ground stone powder in a silk ball.

"How the fuck did he know I needed this?" He questioned softly, after having examined the oil closely.

Quietly stowing the equipment back in the box, he smiled involuntarily and carefully placed the box on a safe high shelf after having closed the lid and slowly stroked the inscription of the family's motto inadvertently.

Deciding right then that he needed sleep, he stripped into his night clothes and sprawled himself comfortably under the sheets.

* * *

It was at the very end of the year, a cold day in December, when Red Haired Shanks ran into Mihawk's office as the man was sat working on reports that were stacked around him. "Hawk-Eye! Mihawk! MIHAWK! I've got news! It's incredible. It's-"

"For god's sake calm down." Mihawk snapped, his patience already wearing thin after having been in the energetic man's presence for less than thirty seconds. "What are you blabbering on about now?"

Shanks paused and panted, regaining his breath before starting to speak again. "King Lucci has called for a knighting ceremony." He stated.

Raising an eyebrow, Mihawk nodded. "When is it to be held?"

"In the next four hours at Westminster Abbey." Shanks said, biting his lip a little.

Mihawk blinked once. "...He's bloody lucky that we're able to get organised in that time. Have the agents assemble around the abbey. I want them on the inside and the outside of the abbey and in the surrounding area. Have Zoro no where near the inside of the abbey. I don't want him screwing anything else u-"

"There's a problem with that sir." Shanks interrupted.

"A problem?" Mihawk asked, narrowing his yellow eyes at his second in command. "What about it could be so problematic?"

Shanks shrugged. "It's your son that's getting a knighthood."

Mihawk's mouth dropped involuntarily. "I beg your pardon?" He questioned, floundering for words as he watched a grin start to creep over Shanks' face. "Shanks le Roux, repeat yourself this instant."

Dipping his head obediently, Shanks obeyed the command. "Your son, Roronoa Zoro," he said slowly,"is to be knighted by the King in Westminster Abbey, in four hours." He cast a worried look at Mihawk as the man stood there, rooted to the spot in barely concealed shock. "...You're not going to pass out are you?"

"Wh-What? No." Mihawk stuttered, regaining his composure. "Don't be stupid. I'm fine. Absolutely fine. He's going to...Bloody hell." He muttered finally, making Shanks start to laugh.

"What did you expect? Like father like son." He laughed, his head hair flicking merrily around his shoulders as they shook with laughter.

"Why is he getting a knighthood, anyway?" Mihawk questioned, ignoring the previous comment.

"People all over London, including some of the lads here at MI5 and not to mention your royal highness the princess, have been singing the marimo's praises for defeating that gang leader and saving the princess. Ok yeah, some of the people don't know he saved a princess, but _still_. Obviously word got round to the King, and he wishes to honour Zoro with a knighthood. His royal highness sends you his congratulations by the way." Shanks explained.

Mihawk's cheeks coloured a little, and to hide it he merely stroked his moustache outwards a little. "And you say we have four hours to prepare him and get security ready for they abbey."

"Yes sir. Well, just under that now. Hmmm, let's see. That'd be three hours, fifty two minutes aaaannnndddd..." Shanks scowled at his watch as he tried to find a suitable number for the seconds hand.

"Forget the little details!" Mihawk snapped. "We've got work to do. Find the stable hands and have them groom every horse that's riding out. We need everyone in their best work suits and will need to be on high alert like most other important missions. I will attend to the planning and everything else, whereas you will find Roronoa and brief him on what is to happen. Understood?"

"Aa. Clear as crystal sir." Shanks nodded, the both of them hurriedly exiting the office.

* * *

_**By the way, for anyone who is having a hard time picturing Zoro in a suit, here are some examples. ;D**_

_**(you know the whole [h][t]t]p] bit ) 25 . media . tumblr tumblr_m1ck3cCfn41r9mdpzo1_500 . jpg**_

_**(and here) media . tumblr tumblr_m666juzCRC1qjvme0 . jpg**_

**_Enjoy. ^^_**  
**_Kai XxxXxxX_**  
**_(P.S: PLEASE REVIEW!) :3_**


	12. Chapter 12

**Black as Knight**

_**TAAA TA TA TA TAA TAAAAAAAA! **_  
_**Has anyone else seen Jeremy Renner in P!nk's video Trouble? **_  
_**That sexy little Hawkeye Avenger should be illegal. ;D**_  
_**ANYWAY. **_  
_**CHAPTER! *Cue fanfare and rise of curtain***_

* * *

Westminster Abbey held its breath. The agents that were absolutely everywhere occupied the abbey itself and the surrounding area, the Mugiwara's stood inside for glimpses of their leader along with Mihawk and Shanks who waited near the peak of the abbey alongside the royal family who were immaculately dressed and seated on plush cushions.

Zoro himself felt slightly nervous. He didn't really care all too much about being knighted, but it was the fact that thousands upon thousands of British citizens were to be watching him, and the news was to be broadcast over radios and TV's. And it was all being done in front of the King, Robin's father.

Which in itself was slightly intimidating. He knew that he wasn't dating Robin, but they were in love and-hell. He'd kissed her! In normal lives, it was customary for the boy to be afraid of the girlfriend's father, but jeesh. When her father was sat on the throne of Great Britain, it put a slight strain on the idea of 'forbidden love'.

He was trying not to fiddle with the tiny little earpiece in his ear that Shanks had put in there securely. It was so that Shanks could tell him his cues and what to say if he forgot anything. Which technically shouldn't be anything, since he only had three to four very small lines.

Strapped to his waist were his three katanas, and Zoro kept himself from unsheathing them and sheathing them again, knowing that it would only get on his nerves after a while. His black suit had been washed, dried and finely pressed all in under an hour whilst Shanks had debriefed him on what was going to happen.

The news had come to Zoro as a bit of shock, never mind the rest of the agents. But directly from the terminology of it, he knew that it had been Robin's idea, meaning that she would have told the royal family about how he had saved her, which was troublesome.

Sighing, he reached up and absent-mindedly stroked his three golden earrings that were still stationed in his earlobe. He knew that Mihawk would have asked him to take them out, so he'd purposefully left them in. Just to piss him off.

At that moment, he heard the huge piano start up or...organ. Or whatever it was called. He couldn't be bothered to remember the name of it. In his ear, he heard Shanks' voice clearly murmur to him. "Start walking slowly to the end of the abbey. The walk lasts for the duration of the song, so you have about two and a half minutes to get to the end. Take your time, but don't slouch. The whole kingdom is watching you."

"Remind me why should I care?" Zoro murmured back, his mouth barely moving. He heard a muffled snort on the end of the line, making him resist the urge to smirk as he revealed himself at the end of the abbey so that he could see the masses assembled before him. He nearly swore under his breath at the sight and annoying-ness of the whole thing.

"Because you're on British television. So chin up, eh wot wot?" Shanks sniggered into the line.

Zoro resisted the urge to roll his eyes. The effort making him strain his jaw the tiniest bit as he made do by just blinking. '_When I get out of this abbey, I'm gonna throttle that son of a bitch_.' He thought to himself, knowing that Shanks would know what he was thinking by having not even replied.

"Woah kid, slow down. Stop thinking angry thoughts." Shanks murmured, a hint of humour in his voice.

Realising that he had started to slowly increase his pace, Zoro mentally kicked himself for letting Shanks get to him. He was already halfway after about a minute of slow walking, and all Zoro wanted to do was to sprint up the end and then wait for the song to catch up. But he knew that he was strictly not allowed to screw this up, so he settled for thinking about how he was walking ever closer to Princess Robin.

Meeting her eyes, he allowed himself to show her the tiniest twitch of a smirk at the corner of his lips, to which she replied by tilting her head down slightly to him with a light smile. Just by looking at one another, it was like they were having a whole telepathic conversation.

_'This is completely your doing, you know that Princess?'_

_'Of which I take full responsibility for.'_

_'Kych, I bet you do.'_

_'I now get to officially call you my own personal Knight.'_

_'I dont belong to anyone. If anything, you belong to me.'_

_'Kenshi-san, I don't think that's quite true. And you're being quite daring, trying to play the dominatrix card with the most powerful family in Britain.'_

_'It's in my nature.'_

_'Mmm, I can tell.'_

Choking back a small laugh, Robin looked down at her hands to allow her hair to obscure the smile that was growing on her lips.

Zoro however, had reached the steps that lead up to the seats of the royal family, finishing in perfect unison with the song.

Clearing his throat but once, Shanks raised his voice as he stepped out to address the abbey. "The Crown now calls the MI5 agent, Roronoa Zoro, to come before this Court with his country to bear witness."

King Rob Lucci then stood, and as he did so, everyone in the abbey and surrounding also knelt to the floor in respect of their king. Lucci descended the steps, the crown on his head barely even wobbling as he stopped on the step above the young swordsman.

"Roronoa Zoro, it was been brought to my attention that you defended the royal blood bloodline, specifically Princess Robin, my daughter. As such you have not only defended her, but your own honour and the law that governs this country. Thus you are worthy of recognition and the title of a knighthood. Are you here to accept the accolade of knighthood that is offered to you?" Lucci asked, his voice strong yet strained with what sounded to Zoro like severe illness.

"I am." Zoro nodded.

Lucci turned to Shanks. "Bring forth the chain." He ordered, watching as Shanks stepped forth and handed a thin yet strong chain to Zoro ceremoniously. "This chain has passed from knight to knight throughout the ages in our kingdom, symbolizing the burden that a knight carries in his duties. Let it now pass from knight to knight once again."

Zoro bowed his head once more as he tied the chain securely to his belt, secretly glad that it was not overly heavy.

"Do you promise to continue defending the law and your soon to be title of Knight?" Lucci asked, his voice just about managing to carry through the abbey.

"I will." Zoro responded monotonously, keeping his head bowed.

"To show loyalty to, and protect the royal family to the best of your ability?"

"I will."

"Do you promise to defend the poor and the helpless, and the citizens of Britain in need of your help?"

"I will."

"And finally. Will you show bravery as you have done before now, and not avoid the dangerous paths out of fear, and face your destiny."

"Until death take me, I will." Zoro concluded, stealing a quick glance at Robin to see her staring at him with pride shining happily in her eyes.

Then queen Boa Hancock, in all her radiant beauty, stood and joined her husband. "Master Mihawk as chivalry representative...and Princess Robin as the Royal representative. Do you both now affirm that Zoro has grown in gentle virtue and chivalrous grace, the hallmarks of a true and faith peer?"

Mihawk then stepped forth, his face expressionless as he added his input to the ceremony. "May it please my liege and lady to know that having heard the counsel of my peers, and from my own certain knowledge, I am able to affirm that Roronoa Zoro is a chivalrous young man whose achievements on the field of honour have been matched by his courtesy and concern for all of your Majesties' subjects."

Robin then also stood from her seat, her hand clasped delicately in front of her. "Your Majesties, of my own certain knowledge I am able to affirm that Zoro has demonstrated his abilities in the arts and encouraged their practice in your Majesties' kingdom. Not only this but he is a dutiful and loyal subject to your Majesties' Crown."

King Lucci nodded in acceptance as Robin sat once more and Mihawk stepped back into his place beside Shanks. "We thank you both for your wise counsel. Bring forth, the Great Sword of State. Excalibur."

Coming forward once again, Mihawk bowed low to Lucci as he handed the king a sword of legend, one that accepted none as its bearer. The hilt a pure gold and embedded with a stone heart ruby at the end, the blade once taken out of its ivory sheath seen to be polished to death so that it shone brighter than the brightest supernova.

"Then having sworn these solemn oaths...know now that we, king Lucci and queen Hancock, by right of arms as king and queen of Great Britain, do dub you with our sword, Excalibur. And by all that you hold sacred and true... Once for honour," Lucci stated, bringing the flat blade of the sword down on Zoro's left shoulder before transferring it to the right,"and twice for duty. Arise, Sir Roronoa Zoro."

"The swords that you bear sheathed at your sides symbolize your prowess at arms. Remember well; that the sword should be drawn only in defence of the country, in the defence of those weaker than yourself, or for the cause in which you truly believe. Treat them with care. Wield them with mercy." Lucci intoned, advising him simultaneously before nodding once. "Go now, and greet your peers and your country. They wait for you, Sir Zoro."

Everyone watched as Zoro slowly rose to his feet to look King Lucci in the face, a slight smile quirking at the corner of his mouth as he bowed his head once.

Turning smartly on his heel, he walked back down the aisle a little faster this time to the faster tempo of the victorious fanfare that played out from the organ and surrounding men with trumpets. As he walked, people in the rows of where they had been sat rose as he strode by, bowing their heads in respect and smiling at him, murmuring their congratulations as he passed.

Finally reaching the outside world, he could hear the people all around the abbey cheering and calling his name along with congratulations and shouts of 'well done!'. Allowing himself a small smirk, he waited until the Mugiwara gang along with Rayleigh and Shanks swarmed around him with grins, clapping him on the shoulder.

"Zoro! You're a knight!" Ace sniggered, punching him in the shoulder as he leaned against Thatch, whose mischievous grin matched that of the D. brother's.

"Sugggoooooooiiiii!" Luffy cried in awe, stars in both his, Chopper and Ussop's eyes.

"If you get a pay rise because of it, you can pay for the first round of drinks tonight!" Nami suggested slyly with her eyes replaced by Beli signs.

"And you had a talk with the King of the realm without stuttering. Not bad at all." Shanks laughed, his red hair flicking about his ear a little in the slight wind.

At this, Zoro frowned. "I'm sorry, I still don't believe that that is the King of this country. The King who once killed the tyrant king of France by charging into battle with his devil fruit ability allowing him to change into a spotted leopard that bulled down anyone in his way before ripping the tyrant king's throat out." Zoro stated, his knowledge of the King's history surprising Rayleigh a little. "I don't see it in this...this...decrepit old guy. He's fading. And he's fading fast."

Rayleigh nodded. "I know. It's been something that the royal family have kept undercover. But the moment the king falls...we will be lost without our leader. It is he who keeps things going when all else fails. He has done so before, but it is unlikely that he shall do so again." He said gravely.

* * *

"Zoro." Mihawk's voice hailed the green-haired teenager as he entered his office, not standing at the entrance and instead offering a puse coloured folder to him. Zoro reluctantly took it, his eyes scanning the report quickly as Mihawk waited for him to read. "This will be your next task. Find him and bring him in."

"Jack the Ripper?" Zoro questioned, the face of the man not appearing in his mind seeing as he had never encountered him. "Who is he and why are we going after him?" He asked, seemingly unbothered by it.

Mihawk sighed in annoyance. "It is listed there if you bothered to read anything." As Zoro gave no response, he continued. "Jack the Ripper, fits his name to a tee. They say he only carries a knife and kills people by slitting their throats and allowing them to bleed to death. His victims typically involve female prostitutes from the slums, their throats cut prior to abdominal mutilations. Usually the bodies are found either during the night or just as the dawn breaks, that gives you a specific time slot of when best to go looking for him as long as you are wary and are not overly confident of yourself."

Zoro glared at the underlying insult, but after a few seconds of silence, he let it pass. "Is there anything else I should know?"

Nodding, Mihawk rested his elbows on the desk and interlocked his fingers. "The removal of internal organs from at least three or more of the victims have led to rumours and other such suggestions that our killer possesses anatomical or surgical knowledge."

"So he knows about bodies." Zoro stated, mulling it over for a moment or two. "And we're just catching and bringing him in, right?" He clarified.

"Yes. If he is not brought in alive, it is no great loss, but if we do then both the royal family and the government have given their permission to allow us to make an example of him." Mihawk agreed, his eyes glinting at the mention of 'making an example'.

Zoro wasn't sure he wanted to know what his father meant by that.

"Zoro." Mihawk called, gaining his attention. "Are you sure you are up to this?"

"Yes." Zoro snorted contemptuously.

"Yes _sir_." Mihawk corrected sharply, narrowing his eyes at the green haired boy.

"There's no need to call me sir, Mihawk." Zoro said with a smirk, making Mihawk fix him with an irritated stare.

"Just take the report and get going with it. I want you and three others on the case, and I insist on one of them being Shanks. He already knows of the report and will be waiting for you just outside headquarters this evening at seven o'clock."

"I'll have the horses taken out in readiness." Zoro nodded, turning to walk away.

"No. This job will be done on foot. The horses will not be able to get down the alleyways that you may find your target in. You will be fast enough as you are." Mihawk disagreed before wordlessly dismissing him, focusing on the papers neatly filed on his desk.

* * *

That night, a young girl waited out on the corner that joined Prescot and Leman street. Every which way was deserted, and she was scantily dressed with a vest top that did not cover the visible tattoo on one of her arms or her bare stomach and with a neck line that clearly displayed a fair amount of cleavage, not to mention that her legs on full show due to her incredibly short shorts and high-heeled sandals. Her hair was clipped up to the back of her head to reveal the gorgeously smooth skin of her pale neck that had a slight trace of goosebumps from the light cold wind that whipped around her body in the cold night.

As the minute hand of the clock hanging from the street lamp clicked into place to align with the hour hand to make it midnight, Zoro pushed his back against the lamp and rose to his full height before walking off down the street that was dimly lit by a couple of other street lamps. Zoro on the other hand looked less than a shadowy figure from where his black suited self emerged from the darkness as though just casually walking down the street from a business meeting during the night.

Passing by the lamp on the corner, the girl reached out and grabbed at his shoulder so that he stopped in surprise. "Evenin' sir." She whispered sexily, her hands slowly roaming his body almost teasingly so that he tried to step away from her. "You lookin' real tense, know tha'? Betcha I could 'elp with tha' if you wanna go for a bit...promise it's cheap as h'anythin'. I'll make et enjoyable."

"I do not need your services. Try someone else lady." Zoro snapped, giving the woman a knowing look as she winked back, allowing him to push her back towards the street lamp as he strode off down the next street and slid silently into a doorway where he could watch the girl from a distance, acknowledging Shanks' presence alongside him with a curt nod.

Shanks raised an eyebrow at him. "Did Nami play her part alright?" He asked in a voice that was barely even a whisper.

"Give her some credit. Nami's been able to slip into different roles since we were kids. She's a bloody expert at this." Zoro replied curtly.

Shanks nodded. "Well she's doing it pretty damn well then. Heh, looking at her like that almost makes me feel a little bit tempted to-"

"Finish that sentence and I'll tell her you said it, then you'll be singing castrato for the rest of your life." Zoro threatened, making Shanks immediately shut his mouth much to Thatch's amusement in a concealed doorway on the opposite side of the street.

Their attention was suddenly drawn to another figure approaching Nami from the other street, walking straight up to her and toying with her hair as they exchanged a few words and he made slightly more intimate gestures that made Zoro clench his jaw, willing for Nami to move it on.

As though sensing his feelings, Nami seemed to make a suggestion to which the man smiled and nodding, still caressing her slightly and making her giggle as he towed her back down the street from whence he'd came. Looking across the street at Thatch to see his friend nod to him, he nudged Shanks so that together the three of them set off after Nami, staying a fair distance yet keeping her and the other man within their sights.

They watched in disbelief as Nami was suddenly pressed up against a wall, the man's hands groping for her, his patience obviously not having held out that long. Nami's horrified look as he started to try and shed what little clothes she wore made Zoro's hands fly to his katanas and begin to unsheath them in anger.

But before he could even fully unsheath them, the sound of wood sickeningly hitting flesh resounded in the night, making the three of them look back to see Nami still stood up against the wall, but her assailant now crumpled on the floor out cold with her saviour dressed in a fine black suit and a top hat wielding a hunk of a wooden beam that had been pulled off of a window that had been boarded up on the other side of the street next to a small alleyway with a stone arch at its entrance.

Nami looked rather stunned herself, and she jumped as the man tossed the beam back over towards the window and stepped forwards to tenderly take her hand. In the night, the man's kind voice echoed down the street so that Shanks, Zoro and Thatch could clearly hear what was being said.

"My dear, are you quite alright?"

"Y-Yes. I'm fine thank you."

"Surely not, you are trembling! Come with me. I was about to head down to give my dear friend who works at the railway station a little company, as he gets so lonely. I'm pretty sure he could put the stove on for us and could perhaps break out a tin of sardines to help warm you up after that little ordeal."

"Oh..No. Thank you but I should probably-"

"No, no my dear! I insist! Why you are sti-What on earth am I doing standing here chattering whilst you are shivering with cold? Here, take my coat. We'll walk down to the station together and we'll have you no longer feeling the cold."

Nami could not do anything for fear of rudely rejecting his kindness as he helped put his long black coat over her shoulders before she slipped her arms gratefully into the arms of the warm coat, allowing him to tow her away towards the railway station that was less than a two minute walk away.

Frowning in worry, Thatch looked to Zoro as Nami turned the corner with the strange yet kind gentleman, the two of them staying back as Shanks ran out and scouted around the area that Nami and the gentleman had just vacated. "Zoro...something's not right about this." He murmured, his stomach feeling unusually queasy.

"I'll agree with that lads." Shanks stated grimly as he rejoined them. "It looks like we've just handed Nami over into the hands of our killer."

Zoro's head whipped around to look at the second-in-command of the agents. "What?" He demanded.

Nodding his head in a certain direction behind him, Shanks' eyes flitted over to where the gentleman had tossed the beam. Curious, Thatch and Zoro wandered over to the alleyway with the arch, a horrible stench filling the air as they drew closer. When they saw the cause of it, Thatch turned away after little more than a second and ran to the side of the road to be sick. Zoro meanwhile was transfixed with a mixture of disgust and horror.

Laid out on its side, was the remains of what used to be a woman. The term 'used to be' used because of the state of the mangled body, the face unrecognisable and the throat heralding two violent slashes across the throat. The abdomen was also split open to reveal the insides gleaming at him as they poured out of the body like boiled water did a teapot. Bones were also shown in the throat as they jutted out slightly at an angle, kind of like the bone did in the right wrist which showed the signs of the unsuccessful struggle of the poor victim.

Zoro hung his head after about a minute or two, staring at the pavement as he tried to dispel the image from his mind. Instead he focused on the blood beneath him. Blood that had been drooling over the pavement which now slowly ran over the cobblestones as flecks of rain were spat from the heavens above them, mingling with the blood so that it dribbled over the stones and was washed away into the drains below the city.

Shanks looked at them as Zoro turned to him and Thatch stopped retching, his bowels now empty of any lunch or dinner that had previously been in there. Shanks' eyes heavy with a kind of knowing dread that was mirrored in his fellow agents expressions as he spoke.

"If we don't find her in time, Nami will end up like that." He breathed out heavily through his nose. "Or worse."

* * *

As they entered the railway station's tiny wooden building that felt more like a shack on stilts than anything else, Nami looked out of the grimy window as the gentleman lit up the lanterns in the completely pitch black single room with a match, illuminating the room to reveal a scar that ran down from the middle of the man's forehead to his left ear, the scar just running above his eyebrow.

Noting that something was wrong due to the absence of anybody there, Nami turned to him. "Hey..uh. Where's your friend?"

"What?" The gentleman asked, his earlier well-spoken tone slipping slightly to give him a little more of a rougher, London-er edge about him.

Trying to stay calm and stay her panic, Nami kept her voice as steady as she could, wishing that Shanks would burst in that door at that moment with Zoro and Thatch. "You know! That friend you said would be waiting here so that we could put the stove on and warm up?"

At this, the man snorted. "Lesson number one, never trust a stranger. If you haven't already figured it out, I lied."

Sensing danger as he took his hat off and laid it on the floor in the corner, Nami swallowed nervously. "Wh-Who are you?" Nami questioned, her eyes wide, fumbling around for that clip in her hair that she could take out and turn it into the secret knife that it also doubled up as.

"There's no good look for that clip my dear. I replaced your fancy looking knife one with another earlier. And the name's Jack. You lot out there know me as 'Jack the Ripper' I believe. Got you guys to thank for that really. Made me into a right celebrity you have. S'all very flattering, must say."

"B-b-but you hit that other guy when he was...with...with that beam!" Nami cried, hoping to appeal to his better nature before she had to resort to anything else, even though she had no other weapon on her to be able to defend herself with.

"Ahh yes. Not my favourite weapon, but it does the job. Shame I couldn't kill him really, but I couldn't kill in front of those three little friends of yours." At this, Nami's eyes widened. "Oh yes my dear, I knew they were after me. But what they don't realise is that they're not really after me. No, no, no. I'm just carrying out orders. The only difference is that unlike the others before me, I don't need controlling. The master can control 'em through those funny lil' strings of his, but he knows that I was willing to do the dirty work. To kill...He controls the others for fun, makes 'em do it because then he threatens 'em with death if they don't."

Jack shrugged with a little evil grin. "That's good ol' Doflamingo for you though. Never miss trick 'e don't." Then he frowned almost sadly. "I don't even know why I'm telling you this...Oh wait. Yes I do. Because you won't be alive to tell no one else."

"What are you going to do?" Nami asked fearfully, her blood having run as cold as ice at his last, almost careless sounding statement.

Jack 'the Ripper' grinned wickedly as he ran his tongue down a knife that he produced from the inside of his jacket pocket, seeming to not notice as the blade slit his tongue a little so that a small droplet of blood ran down the length of the dangerous looking sharp metal. "I'm gonna do the best I can."

* * *

**_YAAAAAAY FOR CHAPTER 12! =D Sorry it was rather short..but I don't like filler chapters. _**

**_For anyone that doesn't know, Jack the Ripper is actually based on a real person/character. In British history (1888), he was classed as one of the most dangerous serial killer that London (specifically in the Whitechapel area) had ever seen, and he was never caught._**

**_There was other things that the Ripper did, and one was known as the 'Hell letter' that was delivered to the head of the vigilance committee, Mr Lusk. Here's the link for anyone that wants to see it (and a photo of the original letter. Gives me chills just looking at it)._**

**_h]t[tp : / en . wikipedia wiki / From _ Hell _ letter_**

**_But yeah, I put a little spin on the whole thing. =P (Jack the Ripper was one of my favourite people to study in history...I found it really interesting. Can you tell?) xD_**

**_Anyway, PLEASE REVIEW THANK YOU COOKIES TO EVERYONE!_**

**_MWEEEEEE HEHEHEHEE!_**

**_Kai XxxXxxX_**  
**_(Who has gone slightly crazy...er).  
P.s: SANTORYUU3. YOU WARNED ME THAT I HAD BETTER UPDATE TONIGHT. AND I DID. AT EXACTLY 11:59 PM. WHAT DO YOU CALL THAT FOR TIMING, EH? ADVANCE TOWARDS ME BRETHEREN!  
Actually, please don't come at me bro. ;D_**


	13. Chapter 13

**Black as Knight**

**_Thanks for the reviews guys! I won't say much here, so here's the chapter! (The end of the filler arc!)_**

**_Enjoy! =)_**

A yell suddenly split the night outside of the railway station shack. "ARMOURMENT HARDENING GATLING!"

Nami screamed in terror as the door behind them suddenly splintered and flew inwards under a fierce onslaught of punches. The Ripper shielded his face with his arm and turned just as Luffy came flying through the door with a face of pure fury. Upon seeing Jack with a knife in his hands with a little blood down it, his eyes shadowed and he cracked his knuckles.

"Jack the Ripper...You've hurt my nakama." He said, his voice eerily calm.

The Ripper smiled in response. "If it helps any, you're next."

Responding not with words, Luffy launched himself at the Ripper and punched him in the face without using his rubber abilities, making the man stumble back towards Nami in pain. Nami lifted her leg and kicked hard at Jack's back, the high-heel digging into him painfully as he was thrown forwards again straight into the path of Luffy's oncoming fist.

Growling, the Ripper brought his knife up in defence, hoping to slice Luffy up the arm. However Luffy used his ability to create a bend in his arm to avoid it, allowing the tension in his arm to swing back and hit the Ripper in the face like elastic.

Around them, the shack started to shake violently, the tracks below them and outside starting to roar like thunder as the sound grew louder, a certain rhythm to it.

Cursing, Jack suddenly felt himself being forced to the floor unwillingly, Luffy standing over him with a blank, yet contemptuous look on his face as he stared down at him. "What the hell-Haki?!"

"Aa." Luffy nodded darkly, increasing the force on his charge so that he was laying flat to the floor, the knife still clenched in his hand. With a flick, Jack sent the knife flying up accurately towards Luffy's face, making the rubber boy lose his concentration as he dodged out of the way.

Seizing that chance that the few seconds brought, the Ripper sprang up and flew at Luffy, grabbing the rubber boy's shoulders and driving him back with forceful momentum and making them crash through the railway station shack's single grimy window, taking the damp and crumbling wood with them as the train's horn sounded out as it drove towards where they fell to the tracks through the torrential downpour of rain.

"**_LUFFY_**!" Nami screamed as her hands pressed up against either side of the wood as she stood in the gap that their struggle had made, her eyes wide in panic and horror as Luffy's calm eyes looked back at her as he fell, the last thing she saw before he and the Ripper were hit being the start of a smile that had it been given any more seconds would have turned into his signature full blown grin.

At that moment, Shanks, Zoro and Thatch ran in through the non-existent door just to see the fall, the three of them stilling in shock as the D brother fell into the darkening abyss with his enemy.

The train claimed them both.

As the roar faded and the train disappeared into the distance, Zoro walked forwards slowly and put a hand on Nami's shoulder, who didn't even move or flinch at the touch. Her body was numb with disbelief, and her eyes were unseeing as she stared at the space outside where Luffy had fallen to with the Ripper.

Leaning against one side of the ripped wooden frame, she slid down it, feeling slight splinters sink into the skin on her arms. Her legs hung out over the side of the shack on stilts, and her hands gripped the edge of the floor in a death grip as she tilted her head up towards the sky in grief.

"Nami..." Zoro called from behind her.

She felt unable to hear him, as though he was too far away for her to hear. Nami wanted to stay where the wind would whisper to her with Luffy's voice so that she could still hear him, hear his laugh. And where the raindrops as they fell told a story of the truth that she now realised, the rain mingling with the single tear that escaped from the corner of her eye.

"He saved my life." She whispered, her orange hair soaking through in the rain so that it clung to her scalp. Her body shivered with cold, which made Shanks start forwards and carefully lift her up so that she was standing. He could feel her trembling in his arms.

"More importantly, why did follow us?" Thatch questioned, his voice betraying how shaken he was.

"He overheard our plan to use Nami as bait for the Ripper. My guess is that he wanted to try and keep Nami safe like we tried to, but knew that Mihawk would not allow another person on the team." Shanks explained, his tone full of sorrow.

Zoro felt heavy, and his voice sounded dull as he finished the explanation, having figured it out for himself. "So he secretly followed us, and when you pointed out the body to us, Luffy went straight after Nami instead."

"Aa." Shanks nodded.

"Just as well he did really. We wouldn't have got there in time." Thatch said, looking like he was having a hard time controling his emotions.

"Damn it." Zoro cursed suddenly. "Damn it. Damn it. Damn it. _Damn it. DAMN IT._" He ended up yelling. "_DAMN IT ALL TO FUCKING HELL_." The wall to his right crumpled and exploded outwards as his Haki enforced punch collided with the railway shack wall.

The other three jumped or flinched at the move, both of the guys watching as Zoro quivered. "If I hadn't made you guys join MI5..if I'd just freed you from the start before you'd even started training, this wouldn't have happened."

Shanks shook his head. "No it wouldn't, but then they would have been caught once more and forced into prison, which would have been worse."

"He's right. Luffy would have gone mental if he had been forced to have been cooped up in a cell for the rest of his life." Thatch agreed with a nervous gulp.

Nami spoke up, her voice shaking uncontrollably. "W-We need to l-look for his body." She stated.

The others nodded solemnly and headed for the door and stepped outside and down the steps into the pouring rain that soaked them through to the skin.

Lingering in the doorway, Nami hesitated with her hand on the door frame. Swallowing back anything that she wanted to say, she turned from the shack and headed outside into the rain after her remaining nakama, knowing that what she wanted to say, she couldn't.

On the train tracks, Shanks ran down the wooden planks that lined the metal rails so that his black cape flew out behind him like a train. The other three agents kept pace with him, the only thing driving them was the hope that by some miracle Luffy would still be alive, even after the force and speed at which the train would have hit him.

But it wasn't Luffy they found. Instead the Ripper's body was brutally mangled on the tracks, his breathing shallow and full of pain, and each dispel of air from his lungs forced up blood which trickled out from the corner of his mouth. Shanks swooped down on him and grabbed him by the collar of his shredded suit jacket and shirt, lifting him up so that he screamed in pain, blood spraying from his lips.

"Why have you been killing people?" Shanks asked coldly, knowing that the Ripper would soon be as cold as his previous victims.

"F-Fun." The Ripper laughed defiantly. His laugh turned into another wail of pain as Shanks shook him. "D-DOFLAMINGO ORDERED ME TO." He shrieked, his handless arm reaching for the rip on his stomach to try and ease the pain unsuccessfully.

"Doflamingo?" Zoro questioned, narrowing his eyes at the familiarity of the name. The guy wasn't exactly hard to remember. Dressed as odd as hell, with a pink feathery...thing, that clashed horribly with his blond hair. But as Zoro recalled, it was the man's devil fruit ability that was the annoying thing about him.

"Where is he hiding?" Shanks continued to ask, realising that the man was starting to turn as cold as ice, his breathing getting even shallower.

"Why..would I tell you?"

"I can still make you suffer." Shanks growled.

"Go ahead." The Ripper challenged, his face unafraid.

Raising his eyebrow so that the three scars over them rippled slightly, Shanks obliged by shoving his hand as a fist inside the gaping wound on the Ripper's body so that the killer gasped in pain before quickly splaying his hand out in a casual stretch which made him scream several times in pain before his voice started to short out, having to wet his bloodied lips to get the words out properly. "The little p-pub on the edge of Whitechapel! The Puppet's Strings! He's c-cooped up in there whilst 'e does et all behind the scenes. 'E's got lackeys, like me but not as good." He cried, pain washing over him as he felt himself slipping. "But if you's go after 'im...he'll g-get...y..."

His words faded as his eyes clouded over in a misty haze to signal the passing of Jack the Ripper. Zoro resisted the urge to spit on him. "And may he take the fucking highway to hell where he can burn in its furthermost pits." He snarled, Thatch nodding in agreement as Shanks started the gruesome to gather all of the scattered pieces of the body so that hey could find a bag and retrieve his pieces later.

Meanwhile, Nami was up even further on the tracks, searching frantically for any sign of the hyperactive D. brother. "Luffy? Luffy? Come on you fucking idiot, where are you? This isn't a game of hide and seek!" She called, her voice starting to sound more and more panicked as she became hysterically frantic. Zoro sighed heavily and made his way up to her as she kept calling for him. "Luffy? _Luffy?!_ _LUFFY PLEASE!_ _DAMN IT I LOVE YOU_. _PLEASE_. **_LUFFY!_**"

On the last scream, Zoro reached her and grabbed her so that for a moment she fought against him with desperate screams of 'NO' into his muscled chest. He didn't say anything, but just held his little sister as she cried into his chest for the loss of their nakama.

"Guys...We'll have to look again when it's lighter. We'll never find him like this." Thatch said tiredly, barely able to stay awake.

Nodding, Zoro towed Nami back over to Thatch and Shanks, who had cleared up the mess as quickly as possible. The walk back to HQ was quiet, and the rain falling upon the cobblestones were like claps of thunder in the silence.

* * *

As Zoro, Thatch and Nami walked into the common room to see Ace, Ussop, Chopper and Sabo sitting by the fire and laughing as they told jokes whilst playing a game of poker. Grinning, they looked up to see the returning three and waved with greetings.

"Hey there! Where's Luffy?" Chopper asked cutely.

Nami trembled at the question, took one look at Ace and broke down into a fresh set of tears, startling them as they looked up only to see Nami take off and run down the corridor and into her room, slamming the door behind her.

"What the hell was that all about?" Ussop asked, scratching at his bushy afro in confusion. Sharing a glance with his leader, Thatch breathed out heavily through his nose and went after Nami, quietly knocking on her door and talking to her soothingly.

Zoro looked at the floor for a moment as the other four turned to him, wanting an explanation. Raising his eyes back up to look at them, he locked eyes with the remaining D. brother. "Ace..." He started, swallowing once to clear his throat. "Luffy's dead."

The warmth of the room seemed to vanish. Ace himself looked like he'd had a bucket of ice thrown over him. "What?" He asked, offering Zoro a weak smile in the hope that Zoro would grin back and claim that it was all a joke.

He got no such response.

Ace stood up, stumbling backwards a little before lurching forwards and grabbing Zoro by the shirt in mounting anger. "Where's Luffy? What-...How?" He questioned, his voice rising. "WHERE'S LUFFY? _WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY LITTLE BROTHER?!_" Ace hollered, steam rising from his body as his logia fruit started to inadvertently react to his emotions.

"He saved Nami, when Jack the Ripper suddenly tackled him out through the window of Whitechapel railway shack into an oncoming train." Zoro explained. As he recounted and explained exactly what happened, Ace's iron grip loosened further until his arm came back down to his side and his head drooped so that his shaggy black hair hung down and covered his face. By the end of it, small tears ran down the Ace's nose and chin and silently dripped onto the carpet, his shoulders shaking with uncontrollable grief.

"D-D-Damn it Luffy." Ace hiccuped, his voice sounding angry with sadness as he clenched his fists.

Sabo's jaw dropped at the tale, and Ussop and Chopper both had their arms over their eyes to cover the fact that they were crying. "When...When are you going out again to find his body?" He asked.

"We have to finish the mission first." Zoro stated. "Once we find Doflamingo and kick the shit out of him and bring him back so that he can be tortured and as Mihawk put it 'made an example of', then we can use the daylight to bring Luffy's body back."

"We're going now." Ace said, his voice flat and cold. "We know where he is. We're gonna find that bastard and make him pay for having that..Ripper kill my brother."

Knowing that there would be no reasoning with him, Zoro nodded. "I'll have Shanks tell Mihawk that we're going for Doflamingo." Turning to the corridor, he called down to the cook. "Thatch. We're going. Get Nami." He ordered shortly as the others collected themselves and started to suit up and grab their weapons. "The Mugiwara's are moving out."

* * *

The Puppet's Strings was alive with the horrendous singing of loud and completely drunk men despite the pitch black night outside. But underlying the harsh laughter of thugs was the sound of hissing metal as two katanas were unsheathed. People sat at tables and barstools in the early morning turned towards the door as three lines appeared in it a clear Z shape, which stayed there for a few precious seconds before the wooden door was cleaved by the Z making the door collapse into pieces to reveal Mugiwara leader Zoro with a katana in each hand, Ace and Thatch stood directly behind him, and finally Nami, Ussop, Sabo and Chopper in his fully grown deer form made up the rear.

Immediately, large men in baggy clothes stood up, their size and show of muscles intimidating to anyone but the seven that were stood at the doorway of the pub, who were so incensed that that couldn't care.

"Wha' the 'ell d'ya fink yer doin'?" One burly man with a short black stubble beard asked as he strode up to them and barred to doorway. "Tha' door was a bloody good door. I'll kill ya fer' tha'!" He shouted angrily.

Zoro walked right up to him and sliced Sandai Kitetsu straight across the man's neck, the body falling lifelessly to the floor. "Kill me?" He snorted. "You couldn't even kill my boredom."

Some of them stepped back as they realised who had entered the pub, whispers catching on like wildfire around them. "Oi, oi. Et's Sir Roronoa Zoro, tha' kid who used 'ter be a gang leader 'oo then wen' good and got 'nighted by the king 'isself."

"You shure we shuld be takin' 'im on? Betcha 'e's mighty strong."

"I 'eard 'e was the one wot killed Blackleg Sanji."

"I don't want 'ter take 'im on then...not if tha's true."

Deciding to move things on, Ace's voice roared out across the pub. "WHERE'S THAT BASTARD DONQUIXOTE DOFLAMINGO?"

At once all the talking ceased, and the sound of a pair of shoes clicking drew everyone's attention to the stairs in the corner of the room, to where Doflamingo himself was descending the stairs with his usual insane grin on his face. "Hey, hey, hey! I'm right here...There's no need to shout."

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU LIKE LUFFY KILLED THE RIPPER!" Ace thundered, struggling as Thatch, Ussop and Sabo tried to hold him back.

Doflamingo raised an eyebrow. "Ohh? You killed Jacky?" He questioned. "That's a shame...I liked him."

"You know what I'd like to see?" Nami asked darkly, lightning crackling around her Climatact. "I'd like to see your head on a spike like they did in France at Bastille."

Doflamingo grinned wickedly as his gaze settled on the enraged orange haired girl, his eyes hidden by his sunglasses. "Ohhhhh...fiery little bitch eh? Let me guess...That boy's lover?" He asked, making Nami stiffen and tremble with grief at the fact that she had only realised her love at Luffy's death. "Oh, of course. How insensitive of me...the boy's death is most regrettable."

"Watch it you son of a bitch. I'm not afraid to give you a bloody good gob full of claret." Zoro snarled.

"TO HELL WITH THAT." Ussop roared unexpectedly, firing an explosive pellet in Doflamingo's direction.

With a wave of his hands, Doflamingo managed to attach his puppet strings to nearly every lackey in the room, dragging them to him forcefully so that they took the impact of the explosion. From there, he sent them forwards as they yelled out a battle cry and took out the weapons nearest to them.

The Mugiwara gang found themselves set upon by the thugs. Thatch and Sabo stayed side by side as they started what would have looked like to anyone else like a huge brawling match, only with an addition of a heavy metal pipe that Sabo wielded expertly. Whereas Ussop teamed up with Chopper, whose antlers speared anyone who dared to run into his path, butting them out the way as though they were nothing but pieces of cotton candy laying around whilst Ussop fired pellet after pellet into their midsts to try and reduce their numbers, even when they got up again. But on some occasions on the other side of the bar, Zoro made sure that a few of them didn't as he dealt out death with Shusui and Sandai Kitetsu, having deemed that the scum he was dealing with were not worthy of meeting death at Wado Ichimonji's blade.

Ace on the other hand, had been quickly set upon by a large amount of the thugs. They crowded him even as he knocked them back with powerful punches and kicks that easily broke bones on the receiving end. Under the pressure of so many, Ace stumbled, to which one of them managed to get in and bodily flip the elder D. brother to the floor with a cruel laugh despite his size.

"Now look at ya, eh? What did ya honestly fink we wuld do?" The skinny twerp sneered at him.

"Die." Ace stated icily, his body erupting into flame and giving those who had been crowding and holding him down horrible burns from the flames that caught onto their clothes, also cutting off Doflamingo's puppet strings that were on them so that they were free to flee the pub with dying screams as they became human torches in the night that ran for the Thames.

Meanwhile, Nami had slipped past her opponents, having electrocuted a few with a couple of thunder tempos from her Climatact.

At that moment, Doflamingo focused his attention on a giant of a man whom he had just attached his puppet master skills to, making the man pick up a large meat cleaving knife from behind the pub's counter. Making the man turn, the both of them laughed as they used it to start hacking away at Nami, who fell back under the furious onslaught. She gasped in terror as her beloved weapon was knocked out of her hands, leaving her defenceless and with no-one around to help her out.

As the cleaving knife fell towards her neck, Nami closed her eyes and braced herself.

For a deathblow that never fell.

Luffy, broken and bleeding in many places, was stood in front of Nami so that he was shielding her with his body. The man with the cleaving knife was dead to the world, the conqueror's Haki having been used so forcefully that it had killed him right there and then, the knife falling to the floor with a metallic clatter.

"Don't you dare...hurt my nakama." Luffy growled.

Everyone stared at him, their own fights forgotten as they all stared at the newcomer. The Mugiwara gang in particular had their eyes riveted on the younger D. brother. Nami felt tears trail down her face in relief, as did Ace whose tears were full of joy as he finished off his opponent and started to make his way over to his brother, crying his name out happily.

Doflamingo scowled as Nami turned Luffy to face her and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck as she kissed him and cried in relief simultaneously. Luffy froze for a moment, not understanding what to do before realising and kissing Nami back, allowing her to explore his mouth with her tongue as he replied in kind.

Deciding enough was enough, Doflamingo started to raise his hand towards Nami, intending to make her his next puppet. But before he could, Chopper burst out of a group of thugs and pranced his way swiftly over to Doflamingo, catching the puppeteer in the chest and flinging him backwards into the wall with an almighty crash.

As he went to stand up once more, Ussop let loose a green pellet that exploded on Doflamingo and sprouted into thick green vines that wrapped around his body tightly and mummified him except for the head. Zoro walked over to him alongside Thatch and Ace and at Ace's inquisitive glance, he nodded. Cracking his knuckles, Ace brought his arm up and smashed it back down on Doflamingo's head, knocking him out like a stone.

Nami finally detached herself from Luffy's mouth, the both of them still in each other's embrace. "Are you ok?" Luffy asked, his eyes full of concern as Nami brushed a piece of his blood matted hair out of the way.

"Are you?" She asked in return. "You're the one that got hit by a train!"

He grinned at her, laughing even though it hurt him to do so. "Shishishishi...Oi Nami. You forgot something."

Nami frowned as he tucked a piece of her orange hair back behind her ear. "What?"

"I'm a rubber man." Luffy laughed, pressing his forehead against hers reassuringly.

Unable to help herself, Nami smiled back, aware of the gang watching them. "You're my rubber man." She corrected, softly kissing his lips once more as Zoro and Ace grabbed Doflamingo's body, Zoro having given the order to return to the MI5 headquarters.

The nightmare was over.

* * *

**_I was VERY tempted to kill Luffy off guys. VERY tempted. I was listening to Nickelback - Photograph and Evanescence - Imaginary whilst doing it, and I was fully aware that I was killing Luffy in front of Nami, a huge OTP. _**  
**_  
Well, I'm off to New York now, so I'll write the next chapter in my notepad on the way over and back, and you'll hopefully get your next chapter soon! =)_**  
**_  
PLEASE REVIEW GUYS! THEY'RE REALLY INSPIRATIONAL AND THEY ENCOURAGE ME TO WRITE MORE (and better for that matter). xD_**  
**_  
Kai XxxXxxX_**


	14. Chapter 14

**Black as Knight.  
**_**  
Oooooh! Chapter 14 guys! Only 4-5 chapters left methinks! ;D**_

_**Scary thought, ne?**_

_**Sorry it's kind of shorter than normal too, but there's a lot of info going in. PM me if you don't get anything. =P**_

_**On with the chapter! (P.S; NEW YORK IS AWESOME! IF YOU GET THE OPPORTUNITY, GO!)**_

* * *

A date had been set up only two days after the trial of Donquxiote Doflamingo had been held, the man in question having been clapped in heavy seastone irons the moment that the authorities had laid hands on him and not been let out of them since. And so it was that on a rainy day near the end of January, Zoro and the Mugiwara gang found out what Mihawk had meant by a 'public example' when on British television and radio, the following announcement was heard to be announced;

"_Donquxiote Doflamingo. You are sentenced to be taken hence to the prison in which you were last confined and from there to a place of execution where you are to be beheaded and thereafter your body and bones to be salted and burned before being buried within the precincts of the prison. And may the Lord have mercy upon your soul._"

On a Tuesday morning those two days later, the agents were sent to the Tower of London, where they stood guard in a rather large radius around a small wooden platform which had a small block of wood stationed directly in the centre of it with a slightly rounded groove at the top of the block on one side, and to the left was a solid length of chopped off tree trunk with an axe biting down into it with its finely sharpened and cleanly glinting blade.

A huge crowd of London people turned out to see the event, rushing through the streets of London and crowding around the platform, some of the rougher, more adventurous kids jumping up and down to get even a glimpse of the platform as they all waited in the rain. The richer people were stood in places higher up so that they could get a better view, their umbrella's looking like a wall of black as the rain ran off the tops like tears falling from heaven.

Zoro was stood next to a grim looking Aokiji, whose hands were clasped behind him as he watched the executioner, a plump yet muscled man with a black hood over his face with two narrow eye holes, step forward and test the axe out by chopping the block of wood it had been sat in into two before lifting it upwards and resting it comfortably over one shoulder.

Around the platform, the more seasoned agents wore similar expressions to that of Aokiji's. The Mugiwara's all looked slightly tense from where they were stood in their black agent uniforms, finding that they could not help themselves from watching the grizzly tale unfold as it began to start.

The crowd hushed as the royal family stepped up onto a separate wooden platform with chairs that had been specially provided for them to give them a good view of the spectacle. As King Lucci sat, Hancock, Smoker, Kaya and Robin gracefully followed suit. Lucci and his elegant queen waited patiently as a rolling drum beat announced the arrival of the prisoner being dragged out. Smoker could not keep the look of contemptuous victory off of his face, whereas a calm and collected Robin found her hand being tightly gripped by a very pale looking hand belonging to Kaya, whose face looked so ill due to what she was about to see, that her skin was akin to that of white parchment.

As Doflamingo was brought up onto the platform in his seastone shackles that kept his hands tight behind his back, the executioner walked up to the side of him and pressed a hand down on his shoulder to try and force him to his knees in front of the wooden block. When he would not go willingly, Zoro could have sworn that he saw the executioner's mask tighten in what would have been a grin from underneath it. Keeping his hand on Doflamingo's shoulder, the executioner kicked his ankles out from under him so that he fell heavily onto the wood, everyone hearing the crack of bones in the silence as Doflamingo's knees met the platform painfully so that he screamed in pain.

Seeming to enjoy his power, the executioner grabbed fistful of Doflamingo's blonde hair and wrenched him forwards so that his neck was strung out over the wooden block, his chin resting gratefully in the groove on one side of the block. Although Doflamingo had his purple sunglasses covering his eyes, Zoro felt sure that the criminal was glaring up at him, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand up a little as he continued to watch with a forced blank look on his face.

The drum roll stopped as the executioner lifted the axe into the air over his black hooded head, rainwater streaming down the blade as it flashed and swung down through the air.

There were gasps of horror and a few womanly screams that were muffled behind hands as the sickening crunch of the axe's blade sliced through the spine that travelled up the back of the neck that now no longer performed the duty of holding up a human's head.

Some people looked away, such as Ussop and Nami. Others fled the scene. Or closed their eyes before the strike. Ace had put a hand over Sabo's eyes at the last second, not wanting the kid to see. Luffy stared, his body completely stiff before reaching up and pulling his straw hat low over his eyes.

Zoro kept his eyes trained on the sight, unable to break his gaze away from the image that would be forever imprinted in his mind. A few moments later and by sheer will he tore his eyes away from the scene and turned his head to look at Princess Robin. She was in the position he had just freed himself from, unable to look away but looking as calm as ever, the only thing giving her away being the fact that she was now gripping Kaya's hand in return.

Glancing back at the platform, Zoro managed to look back just as Doflamingo's severed head was raised into air, the wind whipping the blood away and driving it into the stone cobbles where the horrified crowd stood watching, the blood mixing with the rain as it trailed a path over the stones.

* * *

No real action was then reported for approximately five months, during which time most trained, or used the rare time to relax a little if and when they could. At one point, Zoro summoned the courage to go to Mihawk and ask if he would be allowed to watch over Princess Robin once more, but the request was flat out refused. Zoro didn't push the matter like he once would have done, knowing that it would get him nowhere and that Mihawk would only find a suitable punishment for him even trying.

Near the end of May, there was a commotion in the courtyard when Kizaru and Kaku raced by Zoro in a corridor with Shanks in the lead, Shanks shouting orders to the other two as he himself turned down a corridor which Zoro knew lead to Mihawk's office.

Curious, he ran after the two devil fruit users and followed them, meeting Ace along the way. "Oi, Ace. The hell's going on?" He asked in an undertone as they made their way towards the doors that led outside into the courtyard.

Ace shrugged as Ussop joined behind them. "I don't know. I just heard a riot and figured that something was happening, kind of like you." He admitted.

"I know." Ussop chimed in, making them glance back at him in surprise. "Apparently some group of agents on patrol got attacked head on and just got back."

Zoro snorted. "Ussop, now I _know_ that's a lie. No one just walks up to an agent and attacks them. Especially not a grou..." He trailed off as they jogged into the centre of the courtyard to where a huge golden Buddha version of Sengoku was stood, his form dented in several places which showed that he had indeed been attacked as well as the fact that he was breathing heavily.

Kaku knelt down to where Sengoku had laid three figures on the ground, touching their necks and wrists a few seconds after Chopper did, seeing as the reindeer had been already called out onto the scene for doctoring purposes. The three agents, Crocodile, Jozu and Kuro were unmoving, and Chopper ordered Kaku to have the three of them sat up against him in his giraffe form so that he could take the pulses again just to make sure.

The other agents watched as Sengoku shrunk back down to his normal size, bruised and bleeding, but not as badly as the other three. "I can barely comprehend what happened myself." Sengoku told Kizaru. "One minute we were patrolling down by the river Thames and checking on a little scrap between two drunk young boys, and the next we were being ambushed by at least two hundred men and women, firing at us with seastone bullets and other such weapons. They knew how to handle themselves. Dressing like normal people that you find everyday on the streets, but trained and armed to the teeth. We went down quickly after a few good attacks. I only just managed to get us out of there."

Sengoku sank to his knees and closed his eyes in despair as Chopper looked over with tears starting to gather in his eyes. "S-Status report." He stuttered, making Ussop walk over to him and rest a hand on his shoulder comfortingly. "Agent Crocodile and agent Kuro are d-down, cause of death being k-killed in a-a-action. Jozu can be s-saved, but time is limited."

At that moment, Mihawk swept into the courtyard with Shanks trotting behind him at a quick march, his eyes troubled. "Sengoku, when you are healed I would like a full report on exactly what happened, with every detail. I want nothing left out in your description." He ordered.

"H-Hawk-Eyes..." Jozu managed to croak out, immediately drawing the man down to his side with an intent yet blank face. "They bore the mark. Every one of them did. The tattoo..."

Mihawk's eyebrow's knitted together in confusion. "Speak clearly and explain what you mean."

"His mark...On their arms or faces...The dragon's claw was tattooed on each of them." Jozu continued, his throat breaking due to how dry it was. "Mihawk..._Dragon is on the move_."

Time seemed to freeze as Mihawk's entire body locked in place, his keen yellow eyes almost unseeing until they flashed with a mixture of menace, anger and something akin to danger. Standing up abruptly, Mihawk began to bark out orders in a controlled, calm voice, which had everyone immediately on edge.

"Kaku. Chopper. Clear the dead and attend to the wounded with Doctorine. Shanks, I want every strong agent on the streets in no less than ten minutes. I will take one half on horseback, you take the others on foot. You know what we're looking for. Give no mercy. But make no mistake, I want Dragon alive."

Shanks nodded so that his red hair fell in front of his face a little. Then he turned and started to call out names. "Ace, Sabo, Luffy, Thatch, Whitebeard, Aokiji, Kizaru, Coby. I want you with me on foot. Grab what you need and meet me back here in no more than three minutes." He directed, getting answering shouts of understanding as they disappeared to do so.

Casting his eyes over the sea of now gathered agents, Mihawk seemed to pick out Zoro after less than a few seconds. "Zoro. You are to stay here." He ordered.

Zoro's eyes widened in indignation. "The fuck?" He shouted. "This is the first real action I've seen in months, the first big mission, and you want me out of it? Like hell!" He argued.

Swiftly striding over to him, Mihawk took Zoro by the collar and shook him once, surprising Zoro at how much colder and angrier Mihawk sounded and looked up close, giving him the impression that something was wrong. "Listen to me. _Listen to me_." Mihawk hissed. "If you value your life, then you will stay here and do as you are told, do you understand me boy?"

"I'm not a god damn kid any more. I can handle myself." Zoro growled back defiantly, receiving a cuff around the head in return.

"Do not argue with me. You are forbidden from participating in this mission and will remain here until further notice. Do you understand, _Roronoa?_" Mihawk warned coldly, his hand clenching Zoro's shirt so tightly that it was sure to take a while to iron out.

"Fine." Zoro huffed, jerking away from Mihawk so that the head agents hand was ripped off of his shirt.

A small nod of Mihawk's head was all he received before the man turned away to call agents to him on the horseback division, Ussop and Nami being two of them, Rayleigh's name also being called along with Benn, Yassop, Garp and Chopper's who was told to come in his fully grown deer form after having transferred Jozu to Doctorine's care.

Zoro blinked once in annoyance, seemingly uninterested as he covered his anger at being made to stay behind. He turned towards Rayleigh, who had been about to follow the others towards the stables. "Who or what is this Dragon? Why the hell have I gotta stay?" He asked irritably when Mihawk was not in hearing range.

Rayleigh paused, his tone unsure as he hesitated. "I have to go." He said finally, shame and regret in his eyes as he turned to leave. "If you really want to know, ask Roger." With that, he fled at an unbelievable speed after the other agents.

Scowling, Zoro left the Mugiwara gang to their own devices as he stole away from them and headed down towards the dark cells beneath the MI5 building, lighting the lamp and swiftly making his way down the steps before coming to a halt in front of the yawning old gang leader who chuckled at his company. "Someone ruffled your fur the wrong way cub?" The gang leader asked.

"Mihawk ordered me to stay out of a mission." He grouched, placing the lamp down on the floor next to his leg.

"So?" Roger questioned with a snort of laughter. "What's the deal? Bit petty if it's just a mission."

Zoro shot him a dirty look. "It's a mission that has him on edge. He heard one sentence and we all watched as he went rigid. I've never seen him like it. It was as if he was possessed. He's taken all of the strongest people with him, and I would have been one of them, but he just ordered me out of it like I had no place to be there."

"A sentence eh?" Roger asked, raising an eyebrow. "Care to tell me what said sentence was?"

"I don't even know what it means, so you damn well better. I want a fucking good explanation for this. Sengoku told him; 'Dragon is on the move'." Zoro told him, a dark expression on his face.

Roger was silent, his once joking face now completely serious. He sighed once and leant back into the stone wall behind him which wordlessly told Zoro that he knew something. "Well?" Zoro asked impatiently. "What the hell is going on? Tell me god fucking damn it!"

"Kid," Roger started, his face tired, "if you want to know, then you'd best sit down."

"I'd rather stand." Zoro stated obstinately.

"Sit." Roger ordered, nodding his head towards the floor with an authority that still intimidated Zoro a little even though the once powerful gang leader was behind bars. Grinding his teeth a little, Zoro complied and sat down beside the lamp with his legs crossed and his arms folded over his chest. "What I have to say next, you may not like. But I'm going to start from the beginning, which you probably need to hear anyway. So just hear me out. Understand?"

Zoro nodded once, wanting only to hear answers. But his curiosity peaked at the words, making him listen intently as Roger began.

"As you know, London has the two powers. The Law, and the Underlaw. The Law being the government, MI5 and royalty. The Underlaw is more commonly known through the London as the gangs that run London far more effectively for when the Law doesn't quite get it right. Each gang has its own...rules. A personality, if you like. For example, yours is protection for protection, easy going until it gets nasty. Sanji's was vain and cruel. Mine, once having joined the gangs together all over London to promote myself to Gang King was more of the happy go lucky kind of gang, but the reason we got caught was because some of the rougher part of the gang whose previous gang personality had been incredibly bloodthirsty, went and got people killed, alerting the Law to our Underlaw going slightly rogue. Thus the reason why we were caught."

Zoro said nothing, not seeing how this was linking in to what he wanted to know but remaining silent because he knew that Roger would get onto it at any moment. And he was right.

"But that was because those bloodthirstier gang members had not realised the danger of what they were doing by not keeping to the plan. Again, as you know all too well, there is always a rival gang in the city. The one that you are always trying to outwit for dominance, keep out of trouble with by maintaining a friendly relationship, or at least a relationship that is not on good terms but is stable enough to be able to keep steady without each other fighting for too much dominance over the other for fear of attracting the unwanted attention of the Law. We were in the same position as you. Only difference for you being that you succeeded in wiping out the other gang and claiming London as your territory. Like it or not Zoro, you were a Gang King."

"Right...So what has this got to do with Dragon? Whatever that is." Zoro asked, feeling slight pride that news of him succeeding Roger had reached the former Gang King's ears.

Roger shook his head. "Not what. Who." He corrected. "Whereas Sanji's Kali gang were your rivals, we too had rivals. Known as the Revolution Army, founded and lead by Monkey D. Dragon. My own brother."

At this, Zoro's eyes widened. "Luffy's father?!"

"Yes. Luffy is my nephew. You knew this. Dragon left him when he was little because my wife had borne Luffy. So technically, Luffy is both my nephew and step-son."

Zoro laughed once in disbelief. "So when Ace and Luffy joke that they are brothers...They kind of are. Step-brothers."

"Exactly. Rouge passed away after Luffy's birth, may kami receive her soul in peace." Roger explained. "But Dragon did not care for family in the same way as I did. He only cared about his plan, and how his gang would help him achieve his goal."

"Which was...?" Zoro asked, raising an eyebrow.

Roger looked almost sad as he answered. "To overthrow Great Britain."

"That's impossible." Zoro snorted sceptically. Then he saw Roger's face, and his face faltered slightly. "Isn't it?"

"No. It wasn't. Bit by bit, Dragon built up his gang by touring all around England, gathering followers to him secretly with false rumours that the government was corrupt, feeding the country lies to any who would believe it. When the money shortage came, he put it down to the rich drinking in their money so as to be able to live well whilst we all suffered. He'd always wanted to try and cause trouble when we were boys, but now it had developed into an obsession for chaos. I only once tried to get Dragon to stop what he was doing, but he would not listen to me. Instead he threatened that if I tried to interfere again, he would not hesitate to kill me. Fearing the worst for when Dragon would return, I had every member of Oro Jackson gang trained up and ready for battle if ever the need came."

"When I heard that he was nearing London with nearly half an army at his back, I planned to circle his group from the moment he entered the city and wipe out or detain as many as we could. Make enough racket so as to show the Law that we were on their side and would be able to help. Unfortunately, things didn't go to plan. Dragon's plan to get me out of the way had been to make me panic enough so as to get my group ready, having known that I had gangs that had joined under me. Using the crueller gangs as bait, he'd known that training them up would make them long to kill something like they would have used to in their previous gang. So when they started a killing riot outside Times Square and fled the agents by running back to our base, they led them straight to us so that we were all blamed and labelled dangerous. We were mostly slaughtered by the agents, myself and Rayleigh captured."

"They killed your gang?" Zoro asked, disgust crossing his face as resentment and hate for the MI5 built up once more.

Roger nodded. "Only those who panicked and tried to fight back. Those who knew me well or had any sense did not fight. They stood beside myself and Rayleigh as the others from once separate gangs freaked and tried to either flee or fight. We had to stand and watch as other gangs were cut down around us. The others were then taken to prison to spend the rest of their days there whilst I spent the rest of mine here...and you already know of Rayleigh's fate. When I heard that Dragon had passed straight through London in an attempt to gain more followers before moving back up the country on his second tour...I wasn't sure whether to be relieved or panicked. Glad that he had not stopped in London, and worried that now that I was no longer there, there was nothing to stop him."

Here, Roger sent Zoro a pointed grin. "So when Rayleigh told me of two new gangs taking our place, namely yours as the better gang with both Luffy and Ace a part of it and doing well...I could have wept with joy right about then. I have to admit though, knowing that you were Hawk-Eye's son made it that little bit sweeter because it meant that you'd rebelled against him, which I'm pretty sure was a painful blow to him."

"Unfortunately for him, as you know, it wasn't the only painful blow that Dragon helped to make. You rebelling was because of the loss of your mother, and this was a part of Dragon's main plan as I later worked out."

Zoro stared at Roger in confusion. "I...I don't understand. What has Dragon got to do with my mother?"

"Dragon believed that if he could make Mihawk go insane, or break him in any way, he would have a wound that would never close that he would be able to use against him. And the closest thing he could get to that was by killing your mother. At the time, Dragon didn't know that she had recently given birth to a son, you. So he went after your mother in an attempt to kill her and drive Mihawk insane. But his plan backfired slightly...I don't quite know the details, but from what I know your mother knew of the plan to have her killed, to which she fled and left you in your fathers care in a desperate try to lead Dragon away from you and Mihawk and to save the country from being overrun by Dragon's growing gang during Mihawk's grief."

Staring at Roger, Zoro tried to comprehend what he had just been told, glad that he had opted to sit down after having been ordered to do so. He was having a hard time of trying to imagine his father grieving, even over the mother that he could barely remember the face of. "But...Then...I don't-...He grieved?"

"For months I heard. The grief twisted him in ways unimaginable. Making him how he is now in that he could not feel emotions other than those which the brooding darkness inside him allowed him to feel. He had you, but as his only child he had no idea how to raise you, and you combined with his work were the only things left of your mother, and the idea of raising you into the agent that your mother had once been possessed him."

"That bit I can understand." Zoro stated, grinding his teeth in anger as he thought back to how Mihawk had been determined to make him into an agent, treating him with only ever negative emotions, and never with the love of a father that Zoro had more than once yearned for. Suddenly his brain ground to a halt. "Wait a sec-My mother was an agent?"

"One of the best." Roger grinned. "She was second in command to your father, the place I believe that Shanks le Roux filled in."

Zoro's jaw nearly dropped. "She was Mihawk's second in-Jesus." One of his hands rubbed his face tiredly as he tried to take it all in. Then he snapped back to reality. "This is all well and good...But she's dead. So what does it mean? 'Dragon is on the move?'"

Roger's jaw set. "It means...That he is ready. That Dragon has moved back to London."

* * *

Back in his room, Zoro hurriedly stripped and changed back into his old street clothes. The ones that marked him out as the gang leader that everyone knew. The leader of the Mugiwara gang. The Gang King. His boots firmly on his feet with his black trousers and clean white shirt with it's low v-neckline, the bandanna that was wrapped securely around his upper arm, the three gold earrings that dangled from one earlobe, and finally the three katanas that were strapped to his side.

Deeming himself ready, he streaked out of room and down the corridors before exiting the MI5 headquarters altogether, running straight onto the streets of London.

He wasn't quite sure what he was looking for, only that he had to keep an eye out for a large group of people, who if he came across, he would make sure to warn them before he beat the shit out of them, depending on the situation.

As he ran down the at first familiar streets of London, getting slightly confused with street names, it wasn't long until he was well and truly lost. He cursed aloud as he ended up in a dark alleyway with a wall at the end of it, sealing him off.

"Tut, tut. Seems the people down here in London 'ave got no sense of decency about not swearin' in public." A distinctly Scottish voice said from behind him. Turning, he saw a man with a barely trimmed ginger beard and a shotgun resting up against his right shoulder, a group of people trailing out behind him and onto the main street.

Now Zoro could see why that particular street had been so deserted before. He'd been getting closer to Dragon without knowing it. "Well let me say it a little clearer then, just for you." Zoro said loudly. "Get the fuck out of my way you Irish son of a bitch."

He smirked a little as the Scotsman's face turned purple with rage at being called Irish "How dare you..." He seethed. "GET 'IM LADS!" He suddenly roared, not seeing how quickly withdrew Sandai Kitetsu and Shusui from their sheaths.

Within moments, the rabble blocking Zoro from the main street were cut to ribbons as he shot through them like the speed of light by using a form of his Haki. No sooner had he taken a step onto the street as the rabble collapsed to the alleyway floor behind him, than another twenty or so had launched something at the ground around him, so that the world around him suddenly exploded in bright white light, causing him to fall with a loud ringing in his ears, causing the world around him to fade from white to black.

Zoro groggily woke up to see a blur of red in his vision, and a hand gently patted his cheek. "Where am I? Everything's fuzzy and I got kind of..."

"Lost." Came the familiar voice of Shanks, who when Zoro blinked, was able to be seen much more clearly. Not only that but he could also see that the bodies of the twenty three that had attacked him with their flash grenades were strewn out on the pavement leaking blood that had also gathered on the blade that hung in Shanks' hand before being sheathed. Shanks then extended his hand to Zoro, helping him upright before making sure he was able to stand up ok.

Suddenly Zoro laughed, making the red-haired man stare at him at the boy's out of character-ness. "What?" He asked in confusion.

"What was it you said to me on my first day at MI5, the very first day? 'I sure as hell won't be the one coming to rescue you when you get yourself lost'? Was it?" Zoro questioned, a cocky smirk written all over his face.

Shanks chuckled and raised his eyebrows for a split second as he clicked his tongue. "Well damn." He laughed, smacking Zoro upside the head. "I guess I still wasn't able to teach you anything then, after all this time. I guess that just makes you..stupid." Shanks shrugged good-naturedly, starting to walk off down the street with a hand on the hilt of his sword, just in case any other attacks came in their direction. "Now keep up. Else you'll find me teaching you _another_ lesson. You're not even supposed to be _out _here. Mihawk's going to kill you if he finds you snuck out by yourself."

"Then cover for me."

"I'm taking you back to HQ."

"Hell to the fucking no. You're either taking me with you, or I go and find Dragon by myself."

Shanks stared at him for a second. "So you know about Dragon."

"Yeah." Zoro affirmed.

"Then there's no way you're coming on this mission. I'm taking you back to the MI5 base, and there's nothing you can say to change my mind." Shanks concluded in finality, striding off down the street and motioning for Zoro to follow.

Zoro snorted skeptically as he swiftly drew up alongside his old mentor. "Yes sir, no sir, three bags full sir." He muttered.

He yelped as his ear was sharply grabbed and twisted before being let go. "I heard that." Shanks stated, glancing at his former student out of the corner of his eye, who merely grumbled something unintelligible, to which Shanks grinned all the more.

As Red-Haired Shanks turned a corner down another street, Zoro hung back and waited at least fifteen seconds before turning back and running back down the way they had just come from and turned up onto a flight of stone steps that lead him up high and brought him to the top of a building so that he was stood on the roof, even climbing up on top of a chimney so that he could see London from a bird's eye view.

Taking a deep breath, he puckered his lips appropriately. Letting out an ear-splitting whistle that lasted for no more than a minute, he waited.

As the waiting time got to at least two minutes later, he heard the thundering of hooves echoing along the deserted cobblestones below him. Closing his eyes, he timed it for a few moments before wandering to the edge of the building and slowly allowing himself to fall forwards the short way to the ground, keeping his legs carefully bent.

He landed on the hard leather of the saddle that was stationed on the coal black stallion's back, who whinnied once and tossed his mane proudly as Zoro grinned and slid into the saddle properly, sliding his feet into the stirrups as he gathered up the reins.

"Balthazar. I have a plan on how to get to this Dragon guy. But for that we're gonna need to go and get ourselves caught. You up for a little dangerous challenge?" He asked.

Rearing up on his hindquarters, Balthazar's front hooves punched the air in agreement before clattering back down on the cobblestoned road.

"Alright then." Zoro nodded, his grin turning into a wicked smirk as they took off down the street at a gallop, following their instinct as they went to look for trouble.

* * *

_**And that, was pretty deep.**_

**_Poor Zoro's mother! Sacrificing herself and her happiness only to have Mihawk go kind of insane at losing her...=(_**

**_But this is about to get good. I love it when I write climactic stuff like this. ='3_**

**_If you're lucky then you'll get an update on Sunday or something, we'll see how it goes._**

**_PLEASE. PLEASE. PLEASE REVIEW!_**

**_Kai XxxXxxX_**


	15. Chapter 15

**Black as Knight.**  
_**Hey! And we're back with chapter 15. I've been pretty ill over the past five days, but since my head is clear enough for the moment, it seemed the opportune moment to start typing again. **_  
_**Someone reviewed saying; You like messing up all the characters roles, don't you?**_  
_**...Yeah. I do. It's fun. ;D**_  
_**Thank you to all my lovely reviewers! You give me the best inspiration I could ever ask for! ^^**_  
_**ON WITH THE CHAPTER MY MINIONS! =D**_

* * *

The streets were empty.

The only movement that Zoro could either see or hear was that of himself and Balthazar, whose ears twitched back and forth every now and then in what seemed to be anticipation. Going deeper and deeper into London, Balthazar's hooves passed almost silently on the cobbles seeing as Zoro had slowed him to a walk. Quickly unhooking his boots from the stirrups, he patted Balthazar once on the neck as they passed more and more alleyways which kept mere silhouettes that melted into the shadows before he could get a better look.

He kept his swords close to his side, glancing down only the once to make sure that they were securely tied to him. Yet still he waited, urging Balthazar further into what seemed to be Dragon's claimed territory so far. The buildings looked dead to the world, with their doors and windows completely shut, no doubt locked for safety's sake.

At long last, he sighed in boredom and pulled on the reins gently until Balthazar came to a halt, the horse snorting uneasily as Zoro dismounted and carefully tied a looping knot in the reins to make it shorter so that it wouldn't irritate Balthazar later. With that, he murmured a quick; 'Don't come unless I call' into the horse's ear and slapped Balthazar's hindquarters, making the horse rear with an annoyed yet quiet whinny and take off back they way they'd come, leaving Zoro alone in the middle of the street.

"Lef' yer all on yer own?" A mocking voice called out.

Zoro wasn't able to discern who it was, as multiple people had emerged from every which way and surrounded him so as to give him no escape routes. Not that he cared much.

"My name is Sir Roronoa. Full time agent for the law. I am also known as Roronoa Zoro, for which I am known as London's Gang King. Whether or not I am on my own doesn't matter, you still wouldn't be able to attack me be able to successfully hurt me to a degree that I would acknowledge."

There was a sudden roar of anger at his statement, and everyone around him surged forwards and packed around him in a tight knit group, those at the front managing to score kicks and punches on him whilst the others nearest the back shouted abuse and cheered on those who could reach him.

Letting himself absorb the few blows that were directed into both his head and midriff, Zoro stood motionless with his arms folded indifferently. When those closest to him realised that he wasn't fighting back, their faces turned ugly and began to beat him up more vehemently, determined to get a reaction out of him.

"Yer call yerself the Gang King? In mah opinion yer moar like the Lord of Peasants!"

Zoro had not risen to the physical abuse. But something about that tickled him, and he withdrew two of his katanas, slashing about him and giving no mercy for no more than thirty seconds before re-sheathing his swords once more. Most backed off after that, but a few of the hardier gang members encouraged everyone forwards so that within moments the attack on Zoro had started up once more but a little more violently.

This time, completely not in the mood to take a beating, Zoro lashed out with one hand and grabbed a young girl by her long blonde hair, holding her up against him and pressing an unsheathed katana blade to her throat as she screamed in a mixture of panic and pain.

Upon realising what Zoro had done and that they were now also hitting the girl in their attacks, one of the mob finally let up the onslaught by raising his hand, to which the others quickly retreated a slight distance. Hatred and coldness radiating from them as they unsuccessfully tried to intimidate him with their numbers.

"LISTEN TO ME." Zoro shouted over the angry murmurs. "I know that Monkey D. Dragon is around here somewhere. So you're going to take me to him."

"Or what?" Another mob member asked cockily.

Zoro pressed the edge of Sandai Kitetsu closer to the girl's throat so that the cool metal bit into her throat a little, a tiny trickle of warm red liquid slowly caressed her skin, making whimper in fear. "Or else this girl here is going to know the feeling of metal on bone. Get it?" He threatened.

He could see them muttering amongst themselves but paid no heed to them. He knew what their answer would be, therefore their discussion was only for show and were using it to stall their answer. Zoro coughed once to clear his throat, increasing his grip on the young girl. One of the women in the group flinched, Zoro noting it and presuming it to probably be a relative, possibly a mother or sister.

Reluctantly the mob turned back to him, the one acting as spokesman seeming to be in charge of the little party. "Fine. But mah conditions are as follows. Yer can't hurt any of us, meanin' tha' yer've gotta give the girl back. Alive. And if yer've got anyone followin' us, yer can call 'em off noaw. Elseways we won't take yer nowhere."

Nodding once, he swiftly removing the blade and sheathed it before all but throwing the girl over to the woman that had flinched, watching as they embraced and comforted each other whilst occasionally glancing at him like he was some kind of monster. His thoughts suddenly turned to Robin, and in that instant he was glad that she was not here with him to have seen him do that to a girl so young. Either way, he now had what he wanted.

Suddenly Zoro felt his arms being roughly grabbed and was hauled on until he was skidding his feet along the smooth cobblestoned streets. Struggling against their hold for a few moments, he gave up and concentrated on trying to keep his feet under him as they ran.

"Hey! I said_ take_ me to Dragon. Not drag me." Zoro shouted angrily, tempted to use his Conqueror's Haki on every last one of the treacherous bastards.

The man holding his right arm smiled smugly as he yanked roughly on Zoro's arm. "Y'never specified tha'. So we c'n take you to his leadership 'ow we wants."

As he was dragged along, Zoro took in his surroundings, smirking inwardly. '_These guys...they're all idiots. They're taking me to the very heart of their base, even to their very leader. And yet they don't have enough sense to think they should put a bag over my head or something so that I don't find my way back more easily if I was to come looking for them again. Either they're complete idiots, or it's a power play to scare me from coming back. Seeing as the latter would never work...they're just fucking idiots. If it was my gang doing this, even Luffy would have at least covered their eyes' _He snorted mentally.

Zoro then sweatdropped at the thought of Luffy in his own current position._ 'Thank god it's me and not Luffy. Stupid idiot would probably have said something nerdy like; Take me to your leader..or something like that. Baka_.'

After a good solid five minutes of running, or in Zoro's case dragging, the group slowed as they approached a church. The church was relatively small, no taller than the average house. It was made of red sandstone which gave it a unique look, one that was quite different from any of the other buildings in the area. To the left of the church were two small boarding houses, whereas the right of the church had wooden beams stuck a little ways into the sandstone with sheets of solid plastic on top, the underside of the wooden beams heralding purple wisteria as decoration above the benches and tables that acted as the beer garden for the pub that was a little further over to the right.

This place was a little more active, and people streamed in and out of the bar, laughing uproariously as the joked around and drank bottles of whiskey, sake all other other kinds of alcohol that was to be found in their tankards. Those in the streets around the church bustled about with supplies, some of it food, most of it not. Up in the boarding houses, from the windows and lounging around the doors, Zoro felt that he was watched.

A couple of times, the people who had obviously lived in London before, recognised him and rudely signed or spat in his general direction to which he ignored as he dragged up to the front of the church. The large ornate double doors were opened and they shoved him inside and let go of him, making him stumble and scramble upright, irritably smoothing himself down as he turned his head a little and gave them a menacing glare, making them swallow nervously and step back a little.

'_Hn. That's better...fucking idiots. They dare handle me like that again and they won't have any arms left to drag me with!'_ He thought angrily, turning back to the inside of the church and surveying it.

The pews were almost empty, except for a few that sat there and listened to a terrified man dressed in priest robes who was stuttering a few times as he preached the word of god. One person who was sat right at the front of the church pews, was dressed in a dark green almost muddy-looking cloak with the hood up to conceal his face. No one sat around him.

Zoro recognised it as a seat of power, in which the man obviously had a powerful Haki, one which leaked from his presence even with him meaning for it to which made people wary of being around him for fear of being overpowered even by sitting near him.

Deciding to take his chances, Zoro walked up the middle of the aisle and took a seat in the pew behind the man. He had been right about the Haki, he could feel the Haki pulsing against his own which subtly shielded him from the worst of it. Not bothering to raise his voice, he spoke as though the man was sitting right next to him and could hear every word, since he knew that he probably could.

"You're hiding in a church." Zoro stated. "That's a bit cowardly isn't it? Anyone could find you here."

There was no reply for a moment, but Zoro caught the words just as easily when the response did come back, from a voice deep and powerful yet smooth and knowledgeable. "We're not hiding. We're resting...For now. This is our base, and the best thing about it is that it's so overt, it's covert."

Zoro had to give him credit for that, he was right. "So what's the plan? You've gathered yourself a pretty big army."

"We are an army, and we're still growing. We are the return of the Revolution Army, and there's nothing and no one to stop us. We grow stronger every day." Came the response.

"Impressive...Monkey D. Dragon." Zoro replied cordially.

"Indeed." Dragon said, finally turning his head to the side slightly so that Zoro could see the sharp eyes and odd red tattoo that was etched onto the side of the man's face. "And what of MI5? Are they still set in their old ways? I doubt they get many new recruits these days, seeing as their activity has lessened somewhat. Now I suppose they're just the playthings of the royal family and the government."

"We _are_ the government." Zoro interrupted, salt burning on his tongue.

"Ah, but of course." Dragon nodded. "But what do you actually do? Look after royalty day after day even though in reality they're just normal people? Clean the streets because you don't like to see the street rats that manifest under your nobl-"

Zoro's hand was swift to unsheath Sandai Kitetsu and lightly rest it against Dragon's neck. "We are nothing like that. Everyone is equal, and everyone is equally protected."

"Or punished, I presume." Dragon replied coolly. "Tell me, does Hawk-Eye Mihawk know that you're here?" Zoro's jaw clenched and he stiffened, making Dragon chuckle deep in his throat. "Ohhhh dear me. It seems that you're a bit of rogue agent. What will that old stick in the mud have to say about that? What's your name boy?"

Hesitating for a second, Zoro chewed his inside of his cheek. "Zoro." He stated. "Roronoa Zoro."

Dragon raised an eyebrow. "You're Mihawk's son?" He questioned, to which he heard the slight crack of Zoro's teeth grating against each other. "Well...thank you for providing me with yet another advantage." He thanked him.

"What?" Zoro asked in confusion, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Morgan, Hawkins. Take him below and keep him there, I think a few days without nourishment will get daddy worrying. Then to prove the point, we'll send back the dead body." Dragon smiled, his eyes knowing as Zoro was stripped of his swords and hit hard over the back of the head with a heavy axe-handle.

* * *

Zoro woke up hours later with a dull ache in the back of his head, a loud high-pitched ringing filling his ears so that it was impossible to concentrate on anything else, making him wait for another half an hour or so until it dissipated.

He took in his surroundings somewhat dazedly, rubbing his eyes tiredly as he cursed himself for thinking that he could handle just walking in to an enemy base whose strength was evidently out of his league. Groaning slightly as the light from the ceiling's single light bulb hit his eyes which had been used to the dark until then. He was in a stone room with nothing in it, the only two things of interest being the light on the ceiling and the wooden door on one wall that had a series of small stone steps leading up to it.

Standing up a little shakily at first, he started to warm up his muscles in preparation of bolting it out of his prison as soon as he could. Walking up to the door a while later when he deemed himself prepared and ready, he kicked out powerfully at the door like Shanks' had taught him to.

However, he quickly assumed that there was some kind of steel or seastone reinforcement in the door, seeing as it didn't budge. 'Fuck. So much for getting out of here quickly.' He thought in irritation, sitting down on the floor with his back to the stone wall so that he was facing the door.

At that moment, the door opened to reveal the blonde guy from earlier with the weird markings around his eyes that stood out against his painfully blonde hair. He bore a tray with him, looking like it had been taken from a very old canteen, and there was a single glass of water on it which was left on the tray in the middle of the room for him.

Zoro stood up as Hawkins went back up the stairs. "Oi! Let me out of here!" He yelled, running for the door just as Hawkins spared him one silent glance and shut the door, the sound of the lock being put in place sounding final.

Cursing, Zoro turned back to the empty room and stared at the tray. The glass of water looked very tempting, and it reminded him how dry his lips were, how they were cracking from slight dehydration. '_So it seems that Dragon doesn't want me dead just yet_.' He thought, walking over to the tray and sipping the water to test it. Deeming it ok, he proceeded to gulp down the rest of it.

Deciding that there was nothing else he could do until someone came back, he went back over to the wall and sat against it, his eyelids drooping heavily with tiredness and his muscles rapidly seeming to lose their strength. '_Is this what devil fruit users feel like when they touch seastone..?_' He wondered as his mind slipped into a blank nothingness.

* * *

When Zoro awoke groggily, his muscles screamed at him so that he winced and rolled to his right in pain, the movement slow and sluggish. Licking at his lips, he noticed that once again they were dry, although judging by how dry they were he must have been out for at least a day. He never slept like that any more, not since he'd become an agent.

His eyes fell on the glass of replenished water that was on the middle of the tray, waiting there almost mockingly. Narrowing his eyes, he realised that the water was drugged so that it would make him sleep for longer than needed. Cursing himself, he crawled forwards with barely any energy and finally grabbed the glass of water, grimacing as he sipped the tiniest amount so that he could wet his lips before 'accidently' letting the rest slosh over the edge of the glass and down the front of his shirt.

Dragging himself over to the steps that lead up to the wooden door, he laid back over the first two bottom steps and waited. Even from that tiny sip of the water, he could feel it numbing his senses and making him feel drowsy and slow.

A little while later he heard the door opening with a slight creak, to which he hastily snapped his eyes shut and maintained his even breathing to give the appearance of being asleep. The long-blonde haired man stepped down the steps gracefully and passed him with a new glass of water, intending to place it on the tray and trade it for the empty one.

Meanwhile, Zoro quickly yet quietly stood and raced up the stairs, closing the doorbehind him and locking all three of the locks that kept the door steadfast as swiftly as he could. Turning around, he blinked away the haziness in his vision as he set off down the corridor, managing to lose himself and end up back where he started at least twice or more.

On his fifth attempt to find his way out, he turned up an inclining slope that headed up into the main part of the church. The moment he stepped out into the pew-lined rows of the church, he knew he should have waited until it was less busy so that he could have been a little more inconspicuous, even though it was impossible because of his oddly green hair. Men and women alike who were obviously following under Dragon's leadership turned and spotted him as he tried to walk past without being noticed.

Shouts of his name and commanding words of 'stop' or (more worryingly)'kill him' echoed around the stone church, causing a few people to run at him with the intention of stopping him from escaping.

Even in his numbed state Zoro managed to fend them off with vicious counter-attacks from his fists, elbows and legs as he pummelled anyone who tried to stop him. '_To hell with the lot of them. I'm getting out of here even if I have to send them to death's gates_.' Zoro mentally growled. With another luckily-aimed punch, Zoro felt his opponant's nose break and turned towards the church doors with bloody hands, ready to start running.

"You managed to escape pretty quickly. And tut, tut. Fighting in a church? His Holy-ness will not be pleased." Dragon's voice echoed as he stepped out from where he'd been sat at the back of the church, a small band of his followers trailing along behind him with grins as Dragon walked confidently down the aisle to meet Zoro, the agent's three katanas strapped to Dragon's waist.

Zoro jutted his chin out defiantly. "I don't believe in a god."

Grinning, Dragon nodded. "Shame that. I was looking forward to hearing you pray for an angel or some such to come and save you. Oh well...Just like your mother I suppose."

Zoro knew that Dragon had killed his mother, but he still froze on the spot, giving Dragon the impression that Zoro didn't know.

"Ohhhh...Did no one ever tell you what happened to mummy?" Dragon questioned. Leaning close to Zoro's ear, he laughed softly, his breath tickling Zoro's ear. "Once upon a time, there was a man who desired a great goal, but there was a powerful agent who stood in the way of that goal. So the man planned to drive the agent mad by having his wife killed. Unfortunately the wife knew she was being targeted and left her newly born son with his father and ran to a family friend by the name of Dadan. When your mother asked for help she agreed. But when they were driving along in the red van that was supposed to deliver mummy to safety, mummy turned around in her seat and threw a flaming match on a huge great puddle of oil that she had put in the back of van, causing it to explode. She died screaming for you, you know. The screaming could be heard by what I'm sure was most of London."

Zoro shook his head numbly. "No. My mother wouldn't have done that. She wouldn't have died like that-"

"You don't even really remember your mother that well do you. You don't have a clear picture of her. Perhaps a bit of her green hair?" Dragon sneered, taking a broad cutlass out of the sheath that was strapped to the waist of one of his subordinates.

"-she would have died fighting. Fighting for her life and to prove you wrong." Zoro continued desperately, trying not to listen to the truth in the Revolution Army's leader.

"Kid..." Dragon chuckled in amusement, raising the sword to his shoulder as he prepared for the swing that would take off Zoro's moss haired head. "There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact. I just created the trap. It was your mother who set fire to herself."

Zoro's eyes widened as he saw the sword slice through the air towards his neck, vaguely aware of the sound of a door slamming open somewhere in the background. At the very last moment, he was tempted to close his eyes so that his last thought would be a clear picture of Robin, but he was glad he didn't.

There was a sound of blood hitting stone, but Zoro couldn't see for the billowing black cape directly in front of him that hid it from his view. Zoro's eyes widened incredulously, his mouth gaping open as in those few precious moments the drug wore off, allowing him the strength to be able to move freely once more so that he stood and took in his saviour's appearance from behind more clearly. The black cape, the black hat with the white feathery plume.

"Insolent _boy_...I finally found you."

"M-Mihawk?" Zoro managed to force out, sounding as stunned as everyone else- including Dragon- looked.

Mihawk didn't answer him. Instead he pressed one hand to his stomach to staunch a flow of blood that was to be seen seeping through the slash across it, having ripped through his uniform so that it now quickly started to stain red. With the other hand, he reached behind him and withdrew his sword from the sheath on his back, the black blade Kokuto Yoru glinting with a deadly menace as it reflected the light.

"You dare to harm him...knowing that I am still alive and am looking for you?" Mihawk questioned, his voice steady and even as he raised an eyebrow at Dragon who smirked a little in return.

Giving him no time, Mihawk swung his arm so that Kokuto Yoru's black blade clawed its way in the direction of Dragon's stomach. The blade sliced through the piece of belt which dropped all three of Zoro's katanas, Dragon hissed at the loss and jumped back so that he was well out of range before he stopped momentarily, only to have to keep moving around as Mihawk surged forwards despite his injury, silently pushing himself towards him and tactfully slashing everytime Dragon came within range.

Meanwhile, Zoro darted forwards and retrieved his katanas, strapping them tightly to his waist.

Dragon stopped at one point and narrowed his eyes. Everyone in the room felt the pressure of his Haki that dropped on them all even though it was aimed towards Mihawk, and most people buckled at the knees or staggered under the force of it. Zoro even found it difficult as he fought to control his body despite the willpower that leaked from Dragon's aura.

Mihawk on the other hand seemed unaffected, and Dragon cursed as he realised this, the precious time lost as he struggled to run backwards and away from the reach of Mihawk's blade.

However, he was not quick enough, and Kokuto Yoru's tip sliced open a thin line right along the edge of his cheekbone. It stung as he felt the air against it, and he hissed at the sting that it also left on his pride. His eyes alighting in anger, he roared out orders.

"What are you standing around for?! KILL THEM."

At once the swarms of men and women advanced with a will, grinning madly. Zoro pressed his back up against Mihawk's, who leant back against him in pain and gripped at the wound on his stomach more tightly so as to keep the pressure on it. "What do we do?" Zoro asked, wetting his lips a little. "There's just over five hundred of them, and we're on a headcount of two."

Without answering, Mihawk tightened his hold on his sword and sliced it diagonally upwards. A halfmoon of a mixture of white and blue light eminated from the edge of the blade and severed those in front of him back as far as the door which had also fortunately been cleaved into pieces by the incredible move.

Zoro stared at the amount of damage for a moment in shock before finding his arm being pulled on and swiftly being led out of the Revolutionary's nest at a sprint. Hearing the following footsteps of their pursuers, Zoro let loose a piercing whistle and continued to run, helping Mihawk by grabbing his arm and pulling it around his shoulders, mindful of the blade that was still in the more experienced man's hand.

Running along the stone cobbled streets, they headed further and further away from the danger as quickly as they could, even with Mihawk's grevious injury. The both of them winced when an explosion sounded out from close behind them, pieces of rubble scattering everywhere around them as they flew through the air.

The high pitched ringing sound which started up in Zoro's ears made him grimace, but he kept a tight hold of Mihawk and his legs still obeyed him as he forced them to run even faster. But another sound broke through that of the ringing; the sound of hooves upon stone. Having never felt more relieved in his life, Zoro slowed slightly despite the angry horde at their backs, watching as his black steed drew closer before executing a sliding stop in front of him.

Wasting no time, Zoro helped Mihawk by taking Kokuto Yoru and sheathing it on Mihawk's back and then starting to take his body so that he could lift him into the saddle. However, Mihawk was having none of it.

"Don't even think...about lifting me, boy." He hissed angrily, clenching his jaw in pain as he managed to somewhat gracefully haul himself up into Balthazar's saddle. Balthazar twitched beneath the agent and shifted his weight a few times between his four hooves nervously.

Sensing the horse's discomfort, Zoro quickly followed up by bounding into saddle behind Mihawk and stroking the black hair on Balthazar's hindquarters gently. "We need to get back to HQ now." He ordered, digging his heels into Balthazar's side . "Come Balthazar, show us the meaning of haste."

Dust was kicked up in their wake as Balthazar swiftly burst forward into a full gallop. Zoro frowned as he noticed Mihawk's shoulders tense up in what must have been barely concealed agony. He scowled to himself. _'Why should I care if he's hurt or not? He hurt me plenty of times in the past.'_ But simultaneously, another thought nibbled away at the edge of his mind. _'I surely can't be that heartless...Yeah he may have hurt me before...but he saved your life. Doesn't that mean something?'_ Unsure of how to answer it, he ignored it by deepening his scowl and focusing on keeping Mihawk in the saddle until they got to Headquarters.

As they neared the headquarter's building thanks to Balthazar's incredible speed, Zoro heard Mihawk's faint yet deep voice over the sound of the wind that was rushing past them.

"I told you not to come on this...mission. You...bloody idiot. I will not...save your ass like...like that again."

Swallowing once to clear his throat Zoro nodded, a single tear-drop of sweat running from his temple. "I know."

* * *

Less than a week later, Mihawk was stood in his office with a very concerned looking Shanks. Mihawk's bandages had already been taken off and he was left with nothing but yet another healed but jagged scar on his torso.

"Sir, Monkey D. Dragon has made no sign of moving or expanding. It seems he is biding his time." Shanks reported, his red hair glowing dully in the dim light.

Mihawk remained silent, his hands crossed in front of his face from where his elbows were propped up on his desk. His normally alert yellow eyes were slightly glazed, having heard Shanks but choosing not to respond and gazing at the same piece of wall he had been staring at for a while now.

Sighing, Shanks shifted his weight onto his left foot and cleared his throat. "Mihawk-sama. You can't change what the boy now knows. Just because he knows the full details of what transpired between yourself, Dragon and M-"

"Don't." Mihawk finally said. "Shanks. Don't."

"Apologies, sir." Shanks nodded. "But with regards that Dragon bastard, surely we could gather up our forces and strike him from that little nest of his?"

"I think not. We need time to prepare the agents. Dragon is strong, and incredibly so. He is waiting for something, I'm sure of it. He'll be waiting for an opportunity to strike us when he feels strong enough and his forces are good enough to back him up." Mihawk explained, his yellow eyes roving Shanks' face. "Furthermore, I want to make sure that the royal family are more closely protected. They are not to know of their threat until there is ne-"

"M'afraid Princess Robin already knows." Shanks interrupted, his tone apologetic yet amused simultaneously.

Mihawk's slick black hair moved a little in freedom as his head snapped up, his gaze now focused and intent. "I beg your pardon? What do you mean she knows? What does she know?"

"She knows that Dragon is in London and is building up his forces. There's only so much you can keep from her y'know...and it isn't easy. Especially when she dotes on Zoro with as much love as he does and they keep returning each others letters, so it's not su-"

"Zoro?! That lovesick idiot. I swear, if he tells her anything else, I'm going to tan that kid's hide." Mihawk swore vehemently, picking up a pen with an irritated scowl as he began to compose a letter to the Princess to inform her of her discretion on the subject of the alarming matter at hand.

Amusement twinkled in Shanks' eyes as he bowed once. "Of course." He intoned, avoiding Mihawk's gaze as he slipped out of the office, deciding against telling Mihawk that Zoro had also told her where it was that Dragon was hiding out, how his mother had died, and that Mihawk had added a new scar to his collection.

_'When it comes to Hawky, I think the kid could use a god-damn break.' _Shanks' chuckled mentally_. 'But he's right about the lovesick thing...'_

* * *

**_Zoro finally knows the full story!_**  
**_And (accidentally on purpose) so does Robin! _**  
**_But there's something amiss coming, there's gonna be a big change for Britain!_**  
**_Ooooooh! Next chapter coming soon! (As long as you review). ;D_**


	16. Chapter 16

**Black as Knight.**  
**_CHAPTER 16!(You're so lucky, I'm updating this during a mock exam week) XD _**  
**_Now then...Prepare yourselves._**

* * *

"The King is dead."

Everyone in Great Britain stilled, pausing in whatever they were doing with shocked faces as they processed the information that was being broadcast throughout the entire country.

The only sound to be heard was that of young children who were too young to understand, crying out to be fed. Silence fell. Adults of all ages bowed their heads in sorrow as they mourned the loss of their king. Across the country, silence fell, and the silence stayed.

Meanwhile, a tall yet muscular figure stood motionless in the empty space, two katanas held loosely in the hands of the green-haired male as he listened in silence, feeling the cold biting steel of the blades and the rough materials of their handles, learning about them as though trying to read a challenging book for the first time.

Zoro's head snapped up as the news was fed through to his earpiece. Across the gym, Shanks glanced up and eyed the marimo, who sheathed his katanas resolutely and started to make his way towards the gym doors with long purposeful strides.

"Oi Zoro, where do you think you're going?" Shanks called out. "You haven't finished your training for today yet!"

"To hell with the training Shanks. If you hadn't noticed, the king just died." Zoro snapped, having stopped to glare over his shoulder at his red-haired former sensei.

Shanks sighed. "I know. I heard the news too. But we are not to do anything until ordered to. There are already agents on the scene. Our next big moves will be at the funeral and at Princess Robin's coronation." He replied heavily.

The boy's body suddenly stiffened, making Shanks frown in concern. Zoro's eyes glazed over for a second as he recalled a conversation he'd had with Robin once before the day on which Mihawk had walked in on them kissing.

_"Have you ever dreamed of being something else?"_

_Robin glanced at him. "Haven't you?"_

_Nodding, Zoro smirked. "The only difference between you and me, is that I did something about it."_

_Robin scowled at him slightly in annoyance. "Kenshi-san, do not forget that the only reason for that difference is because I cannot simply run away from my duties. As you like to so often remind me, I am a princess. I have to live by my father's rule and do as he says. Even down to marriage."_

_"Marriage?" Zoro questioned, raising an eyebrow._

_"When the time approaches in years to come, I must marry whomever he deems fit out of my chosen suitors. One day I will present him a list of names when he asks me as to my preferred suitors, but he will ultimately choose one."_

_"And you have no choice in the matter?"_

_"None."_

_"Well that's bullshit."_

_"If I could do something...anything...If I had a wish, just one wish. It would be a wish to not be royal." Robin said, a note of longing in her voice._

_"There's nothing great about being a commoner you know." Zoro snorted._

_"But you make your own choices. Become who you want to be instead of being moulded into what you HAVE to be. As the eldest of the royal children, I will be next to take the throne. A throne that I do not want. Which I have never wanted." Robin's voice raised slightly as she spoke, her words coming slightly angrier yet full of passion._

_Zoro stared at her calmly for a moment. "I heard a saying once. That some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness-"_

_"Thrust upon them. I know the saying." Robin sighed, sounding as though she had given up._

_"And yet when I look at you, I see all three dwelling within a good heart. When you become queen, you will make a wonderful and fair...and beautiful queen."_

_Robin lifted her head and locked her gaze with his. "One can only hope that I never have to become queen. That there will be some divine intervention that prevents it." She turned towards the window behind her and looked out across the sunny courtyard. "Zoro...if you could change your fate...would you?"_

Zoro's mind reverted back to the present and he blinked a few times to clear his head. "The coronation..." He mumbled to himself with a scowl.

Shanks' eyes widened as he realised what Zoro was thinking. "Ohhhh no you don't kid. If you remember, your father told you that you wouldn't be seeing her for-"

"Fuck what Mihawk says!" Zoro shouted angrily. "It's been four years Shanks! I'm twenty-one. I can think for myself!"

"And yet you still act like an impatient child." A smooth voice said from the doors. Both Shanks and Zoro turned to look to see Mihawk leaning up against the door-frame with a neutral expression on his face. "Now do as your told. You have training to finish." Mihawk ordered, pushing himself up away from the doorway and making to turn into the corridor.

"No." Zoro stated, his eyes narrowed slightly.

Mihawk paused mid-step. "Pardon?" He asked politely.

Shanks' eyelids closed slowly in a grimace as he backed away towards the emergency exit door on the far side of the enormous gym. Chanting in his head; '_Recognise the warning tone kid, just recognise it and back down. Back the hell down, he's out of your league and you know it. For god's sake recognise the warning tone an_-'

"I said no. Did you not hear me due to your rapidly deteriorating age?" Zoro questioned mockingly, a hand on all three of his katanas. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to speak to the Princess." With that he started forwards and closed the distance between himself and the gym doors.

Meanwhile, the mantra in Shanks' head quickly changed tune as he silently slipped out of the emergency exit doors, alerting anyone who came into contact with him to stay away from the gym. '_Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Idiot kid. Fuck._'

As Zoro reached the doors, Mihawk's black cape flourished upwards slightly as he raised an arm to physically block Zoro and prevent him from going any further. "Out of my way." Zoro growled, his grip on Sandai Kitetsu tightening a little as his anger grew, not even deigning to look at the man barring his way.

Mihawk glanced at him out of the way corner of his way "I will not tell you again Roronoa." He warned. "You are forbidden to see her."

Sandai Kitetsu and Shuusui arrived either side of Mihawk's neck and rested there, the arms holding them crossed over. "Do not, tell me what to do. You uptight dick." Zoro snarled quietly.

In response, Mihawk's free hand arm reached up and unsheathed Konuto Yoru from his back with a quiet hiss of metal. Suddenly the blade was curving up and arcing towards Zoro's stomach, who jumped back at the last second to avoid having his stomach split open.

Gritting his teeth angrily and biting down on Wado Ichimonji which had been unsheathed during the jump, Zoro held the two handheld katana's hilt ends at a one-hundred and eighty degree angle against each other and started to spin them in his hands, the pace of the rotations increasing quickly as he ran at Mihawk with an angry yell. "Santoryuu Ogi: Sanzen Sekai!"

Had it been any other opponent, and it would have been possible for the swords to have sliced Zoro's enemy up like a cooking dish. But such was Mihawk's speed that the man remained unscathed from where he had swiftly avoided the attack, instead using the flat blade of the sword to whip against Zoro's back with a loud and painful sounding thwack, making him grunt in pain.

"If you stop now, I will let you off easy." Mihawk stated, his arm held out to the side with Kokuto Yoru pointing away from his opponant.

"I'm not going to stop. I'm going to walk over your cold corpse." Zoro snarled angrily, his anger riled up from the blow that the flat of Yoru's blade had given him.

"For god's sake." Mihawk said, the statement coming out as more of a low growl, running at Zoro as the teen did like-wise.

They both stopped as they came just past of each other, having made their attacks so quickly that it couldn't have been seen to the normal human eye. They stood there for a moment, neither moving.

All of a sudden Zoro doubled over, and he began a great hacking cough. To anyone listening, they would've been able to hear the liquid that bubbled in his throat before he cleared it and spat red droplets into his hand. He stared at it for a moment, shaking slightly at how just the back of a blade could do so much damage.

"Zoro. I have been patient. No longer." Mihawk stated coldly, his voice clipped and short as he walked over and grabbed Zoro by the scruff of his neck, Zoro unable to offer much resistance other than the verbal kind since his legs hadn't the strength to do anything but follow as he was dragged down the corridors. Once or twice his arm caught a door frame or a handle, but it only took a sharp tug from Mihawk to cause him to curse colourfully as he stumbled and lost his grip.

Any agents that they passed gave Zoro glances of pity, but they became fewer as Zoro was dragged over a rope and down a flight of stairs, Mihawk having taken the lantern off of the wall.

Even in his painful state, Zoro realised what was going on as he took in his dark surroundings. "Wh-What? Like locking me up is going to solve anything!" He shouted with a scowl. "Are you really this much of an idiot?!"

A sharp blow to the back of his head caused him to swear in annoyance, accompanied by being unceremoniously thrown into the darkest cell at the end of the large yet familiar room. Tripping over his own feet, his body slammed into the far wall with a meaty thump.

Groaning slightly Zoro blinked to clear his vision and his thoughts, but it definitely registered as he felt his wrists taken one after the other and clicked into place into shackles that were attached to chains which in turn were solidly bound to the floor tightly to the left and right of him. His katanas were also removed from around his waist, taken by Mihawk who stepped out of the cell and closed the barred door, locking it. When he could finally think clearly he pulled at them, cursing as he realised that they were made out of the strongest seastone.

"LET ME OUT OF HERE." He yelled, his green hair bouncing slightly as he snapped his head to glare at Mihawk who was stood in front of him with an unreadable expression, his arms folded over his chisled chest.

"Not until you've simmered down Zoro." Mihawk said monotonously.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean? When I'm not angry at you? Because that'll be never, you fucking_ bastard_." Zoro spat, his tone venomous.

Mihawk's eye twitched once. "Then you will never get out of here." He answered calmly, taking that as his cue to leave as he turned on his heel and headed for the stairs, taking the lantern with him so as to leave Zoro in complete darkness.

Stunned, Zoro blinked a few times as the man left. "B-But...No. No! MIHAWK. I'M NOT FINISHED WITH YOU. GET THE FUCK BACK HERE." He yelled, pulling at his restraints. However, his shouts fell on deaf ears which lead to silence.

Disbelief and anger raged in him, and in a desperate attempt he gathered as much Haki as he could let it explode from within him. He did it several times before resorting to yanking hard at the shackles binding his wrists with roars of anger that echoed off the green stone walls, adding to the din of the rattling chains as he pulled at them uselessly.

Finally he slumped to the ground in defeat, his arms aching a little as he hung his head between his shoulders and stared at the ground between his knees, his legs folded underneath him. It was in this position that he swiftly fell asleep, and it was hours and hours before his dreams of the beautiful woman visited him once more.

The palace gardens that were alive with beauty that was no match for the beauty of the princess who was encased in the garden by the deep green hedge rows of spring. Yet the flowers bloomed and the trees blossomed merrily as their leaves and petals swayed in the breeze. Along the pretty yellow gravel that crunched underneath her feet, Zoro watched as she made her way over to the fountain in the middle of the garden, the crown on her raven-haired head a tell-tale sign of her new royal status.

Still turned away from him, she reached the edge of the fountain and stared at the statue of the rearing horse in the middle of it, a long while passing as measured by a dark cloud beginning to cover the sun so that the garden's were thrown into shadow.

A few droplets began to land on the ground and the wind began to howl, whipping her raven hair madly about her shoulders. From his viewpoint, he could just about see the edge of her cheek and her smooth cheekbones, and it was from there that he saw a tear roll down her face after having materialised in the corner of her eye, joining the rain and melding with the water to make salt water as thunder rolled above them in the sky.

A crack of lightening rent the stormy air, followed by a streak of gold and a tremendous splash as the crown was lifted off of Robin's head by her own hand and flung viciously into the fountain, where it sunk down to the depths of the fountain.

Robin paid no heed to it as her running footsteps on the gravel headed away from the fountain and towards him, her face still covered completely by her hair. And as wind's howling reached the pitch at which it could be considered an almost human scream, there was the thunk of the metal hitting the concrete fountain.

The sound resounding in Zoro's head as he woke with a start so that the chains rattled slightly, shaking his head a little to clear it and realising how his dream had quickly turned into a nightmare. Breathing heavily he noticed that his body had awoken to a cold sweat.

"Kid, you ok down there?" Roger's voice asked in the darkness.

Zoro wet his lips a little with his tongue. "I think so. Kind of hungry." He admitted, not able to see Roger but guessing whereabouts the former gang king was roughly sat in his cell further down in the MI5 dungeon.

"I should say you are. You've slept for at least two days, kid. Tired yourself y'did pulling at those metal wristcuffs after having battled Mihawk." Roger replied.

"How'd you know about that?" Zoro asked with a slight frown.

"Rayleigh told me all about it when he came down with our rations earlier. Seeing that you were asleep he said he'd come back later when you were awake." Roger explained, his own chains clinking together as he shifted in his position.

Leaning back so that his back and head met the cool wall of his cell, Zoro breathed out heavily and closed his eyes once more in calm acceptance. "Have you tried getting out of here before?"

"Unsuccessfully. And if I did manage to get out of here then the first thing I'd do is to get to my still-at-large brother."

"Would you kill him?"

There was a pause of hesitation. "I'd have to. He's going to kill innocent people. I know he's my brother but...I can't let him do that." Zoro nodded in silence, even though Roger couldn't see him. "But I've been locked in here for life. There's no way in hell I'll get out, so I want you t'do me a favour kid."

Zoro glanced in Roger's general direction. "Mm?" He grunted questioningly.

"When you get out, kill him for me." Roger ordered.

Zoro snorted softly. "Sure thing. Soon as they remember I'm down here." He answered.

"Hah! They'll remember you're down here. Besides, Rayleigh'll be along a bit later with dinner."

"Oh yeah, and what's for dinner?"

"Prime steak drizzled with the sauce of a _thousand_ islands." Roger said dreamily.

Zoro raised an eyebrow. "Seriously? For us?"

Roger's hysterical booming laughter echoed in the pitch blackness of the cells. "Oh wow kid, you're a good 'un."

A scowl formed over Zoro's face as Roger continued to laugh, and he proceeded to ignore him until the laughter stopped, muttering to himself under his breath about how alike Roger, Ace and Luffy were. His mind then turned to his friends, a feeling forming in his gut that he found he was unable to place.

* * *

Two days later, Nami and Ace received orders to go on a patrol around the lower sewers with agent Kizaru from Shanks as they passed him in the corridor. Ace frowned at the order and quickly grabbed Shanks' arm before the red-haired man could speed off. "Oi, Shanks. That should have been Zoro's task, surely. Why not ask him?" He questioned.

"Ace, please don't question orders." Shanks answered evasively. "Now let go."

Nami caught on and glanced at Ace, whose answering glance assured her that he was not about to let go until they had their answer. "Shanks-sensei." She spoke up, her orange hair flicking about slightly. "Speaking of Zoro, we haven't seen him in a few days, and he can't be on a mission."

"And how do you know that?" Shanks asked, his face neutral to keep himself from betraying any information.

"Because he would have told us before he left." Ace interrupted. "And last we heard, he was training with you. So what's happened to him?"

Shanks shifted his weight and removed Ace's hand with a little difficulty. "Nothing has happened to him. He was training with me when the news came over about the King's death and left once we'd finished."

Nami stared at him for a moment. "You're lying." She stated at length, making Shanks turn his head to look at her in surprise.

"Ehh? I beg your pardon Nami?" He asked, looking hard at her.

"Zoro told us about how he used to protect the royal family. Princess Robin in particular...so when the King died..." She said slowly as she tried to picture the scene in her head. Almost immediately Ace caught on to her train of thought, looking at Shanks searchingly as he carried on and watched the emotions playing across the man's face to determine whether he was right or not.

"Of course! When the King died and Zoro heard about it, he was with you. He's got it going on for the princess, so when he hears about it he immediately thinks of her and knows she'll be upset...so he asks you if he can-no...he doesn't ask, he takes off out of the training room and goes to the palace to go and comfort her."

Nami shook her head as Shanks glanced away slightly as Ace mentioned the palace. "No, he never got there. He never got to the palace. Something stopped him. Shanks? Did you stop him?"

"Verbally, I tried to. But I wasn't the one who stopped him from even leaving the training hall." Shanks admitted, knowing that there was no hiding the truth from them now, seeing as nearly every agent had heard about the builders coming in to patch up the damage that was done in the training hall.

"So who...?" Nami trailed off.

Ace's eyes closed as it dawned on him. "Mihawk." He said, his eyes meeting Shanks' as he opened them again, who nodded once in confirmation. Nami's hands flew to her mouth in horror.

"Is he ok? Shanks...Is Zoro ok? Where is he? Tell us! Please!" She begged.

Shanks shook his head, his red hair flicking about his shoulders. "I can't tell you where he is I'm afraid." He told them apologetically.

"Can you at least tell us what happened to him?" The older D. brother asked.

Sighing heavily, Shanks stared at them. "Zoro's been detained." He said at long length, turning on his heel and leaving the two of them alone in the corridor.

"Ace." Nami called quietly. "We need to find him."

"Aye. That we do." Ace agreed. "The coronation is in two days...and I think I know where Zoro might be being held. I'll find the others and inform them of what's going on, whereas I need you to go and find a set of keys."

"Keys?" Nami questioned. "What do you mean? I bet there's loads of keys scattered around this place!"

Ace looked down at her and rolled his eyes. "The keys to his cell. Obviously he's been locked up somewhere for safe keeping and we need to break him out. We need to know who keeps the keys though." He explained.

"Surely that'd be Mihawk..." Nami thought aloud. "If he was the one to put Zoro in there, then he must have the keys somewhere in his office. He won't be out of there until the day of the coronation because he has to file all the reports that we give back to him on the surrounding area of the abbey."

"Well that's that then. We get ready for this coronation and gather the information. Where Zoro's being held, where the keys are and the best way to get out of here." Ace stated, happy with his plan.

"Ehh? Get out of here?" Nami questioned, glancing at Ace quizzically as they started walking.

He nodded in response. "We've been here for far too long Nami. We're a gang, and we need to get out of here."

* * *

Westminster Abbey was full of royalty. The royal family, royalty from other countries and their families. Agents were strategically placed in every place in around the abbey for maximum protection, as well as just the regular police and palace guards. The commoners either waiting eagerly on the streets of glued to their TV's or radio's if unable to get close to the event.

Princess Robin's Coronation.

As she ascended the steps to Saint Andrew 's chair, the throne which she was due to be crowned upon in the near future, the Hym of 'I Was Glad When They Said Unto Me' began to beautifully die away in everybody's throats.

"My lady, is Your Majesty willing to take The Oath?"  
Robin's face was expressionless as she answered. "I am willing".

"Will you govern your peoples of Great Britain, Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand according to their lands and customs?"

"I solemnly promise to do so."

"Will you to your power cause Law and Justice, in Mercy, to be executed in all your judgements?"

"I...w-w..." Robin's words caught on the edge of her lips, and the country held it's breath, each person leaning forwards slightly as they willed her to speak. Her cerulean eyes roved over the expectant faces staring up at her, finally meeting the sad gaze of her sister Kaya, who nodded to her once. And it was that which made Robin's decision. "I will not." She stated plainly, standing up and taking flight down the stairs of the abbey.

Immediately there was action. Everyone gasped in surprise or with exclamations of horror as they rose in their seats, staring as Robin ran past them and out towards the streets of London. As agents ran to try and stop her, Kaya suddenly let loose a scream and collapsed to the floor. At least half of the agents turned and ran to her, fussing around her as she blinked hazily and fanned herself.

_'I don't know what you're up to Robin, but to turn down the throne it must be important to you.'_ Kaya thought to herself as she sat up about ten minutes later, apologising and confirming that; Yes, she was ok and that if she could just have a glass of water and a little space then she would be fine, and thanked them for their hospitality.

Meanwhile, Robin had made her way swiftly over to the MI5 headquarters and had pushed the doors open for herself using her abilities, making an eye appear in the places behind her and in front of as she walked to make sure that there was no one that she would run into.

It was very unlikely anyway seeing as the agents had all been at the coronation. All except one, she had noticed. 'You saved me once. I will save you now.' She thought to herself, darting round corners and turning corridors as she began her search for him, using her devil fruit to create eyes on every wall and door that she could find.

Just as she turned yet another corner, she ran into a slender orange-haired girl and nearly caused them both to fall over. Immediately the other started screaming at her angrily. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING RUNNING AROUND CORNERS LIKE THAT?! YOU COULD HAVE SERIOUSL-Oh my god." The woman abruptly stopped herself mid-scream as she realised who she was screaming at. Robin looked on amusedly as the woman curtseyed awkwardly. "Princess Robin! I..uhh...M'sorry. I just-"

"You must be Nami." Robin said calmly.

Nami stopped floundering for words and nodded, her orange curls bouncing slightly. "Yes ma'am." She affirmed.

"Please, call me Robin." She smiled.

"Ok...Robin." Nami said with slight hesitation, trying the name without the status. "Uhm..what brings you here?"

"I'm looking for my knight. Roronoa Zoro." Robin told her, blinking her large purple irised eyes at the younger girl.

Nami's eyes brightened. "D'you think you could help us get him out?" She asked excitedly.

"Get him out of where?" Came Robin's replying question.

"He uhh...he's been locked up behind bars." Nami admitted.

"Show me." Robin ordered, her eyes taking on a slight steely look.

Together, the two women took off down the corridor with Nami in the lead as she lead them down further and further into the deepest pits of MI5.

Meanwhile, Ace, Ussop and Luffy were already descending the stairs into the lower basement to where they had managed to figure out was where Zoro was being held. Ussop was slightly nervous as he walked behind the two confident D brothers and his hand shook from where he was holding the lantern in his clenched hands, worrying about what was going to happen to them if they were caught. Ahead of him Ace's fists were already aflame, lighting the cells up like a beacon.

As the three of them searched the mostly empty cells, Ace's flame illuminated the face of the notorious former gang king.

"Hey Dad." Ace grinned, nodding to his father.

"Hey there son." Roger said, grinning in return in the light of the bright orange flame.

"Uncle Roger!" Luffy cried happily, waving to him as Roger winked in return at his nephew.

At that moment Nami ran down the steps with Robin right behind her, and she hurried over to them with a set of keys jangling against each other in her hand. "I've got the keys." Nami panted, her hands scrabbling at the padlock as she inserted each key into the lock and tested them.

"Good, but hurry up Nami, the rest of the Mugiwara's are on standby and are ready to go as soon as we get him out of here." Ace pressed, his face showing slight concern as he checked over his muscled shoulder for the thousandth time.

"Shut up Ace! I know! I'm going as fast as I can!"

"How did you even get those keys anyway?" Luffy asked.

Beside him, Ussop sweatdropped. "Do you even know what she does for a living, Luffy?" He muttered.

The lock clicked as Nami twisted the correct key into the lock and slid the bars back from Zoro's cell with Ussop's help. "I managed to get them out of Mihawk's office earlier when he was away preparing the abbey." She informed him, rolling her eyes as though it was obvious.

At a request, Nami handed over the keys to Robin who stepped forwards into the cell and knelt beside Zoro, releasing him from the chains that held his wrists and being careful not to touch the seastone. "Kenshi-san, come with us. We're going to get you out of here."

"Isn't it supposed to be your coronation today?" Zoro asked.

"I refused." Robin stated. "I did not want to live a life that didn't include you in it. Now come with us...you once saved us, so we're now saving you."

He stared at her for a moment as her fingertips brushed his lips. "You, all of you, need to get out of here as quickly as you can." Zoro said, shaking his head in defeat.

"Not without you Zoro!" Luffy yelled.

"If I get out of here, I'll only be hunted down again. And even more likely you will all be killed for having helped me escape."

"They wouldn't dare." Ussop tried bravely. "Besides, they'd have to find and catch us first."

"They would Ussop." Zoro insisted. "If you don't get out of here now-"

"Oh for god's sake." Robin's eyes flashed in slight irritation. "Zoro, stop your _bitching_ and get the hell out of here-"She started, making everyone's jaw drop around her, and Roger raised an amused eyebrow. "-or else I'll get Mihawk to kick your fucking arse myself." She said, raising her chin defiantly.

"No need for that." Mihawk's voice said darkly from behind them.

Everyone but Roger and Robin froze. Roger merely laid back against the stone wall, watching with interest as Zoro edged away from the cell door and looked away. Robin turned, opening her mouth to speak, but was surprised when Mihawk took her firmly by the wrist and started to tow her away. "M'lady. I'm afraid that you are the next in line for the throne, and as such, you must take your place and-"

"Why do you pay more attention to me rather than your own son?!" Robin yelled angrily, punching Mihawk's arm, hard. Mihawk stopped.

He let go of her and turned to face her, his face a mask of fury. "Why? Because you see, my son is in rather a lot of trouble, and I would prefer it if no-one, least of all yourself, were to witness his punishment. It would distress you, and you have far more important matters to attend to." He said icily, his yellow eyes piercing as he stared at them all. The Mugiwara's shuffled uncomfortably aside from Luffy who glared at Mihawk angrily, and Ussop's knees knocked together uncontrollably. "Out. All of you." Mihawk said dangerously as he started to let out a dark aura. "Now."

The four Mugiwara's shot an apologetic look at Zoro before taking Robin's hand and bolting for the exit, leaving the three of them together. The silence stretched for a few minutes before Mihawk broke it.

"Zoro." He started coldly. "When I decided to take you into MI5, I had hoped that you would see the error of your ways. Not only have you abused my judgement, but you have flaunted it in my face."

"Of course I have." Zoro said tiredly, wishing it would all just go away. "It seems I just can't stay out of trouble. I happened to do something right, and then life got in the way."

"Do not dare to take that tone with me boy." Mihawk snarled, his eyes blazing angrily.

"Can I take that tone with you?" Roger asked in a semi-interested voice, raising his hand as though he was at primary school. Zoro snorted quietly with laughter, hiding his grin as he looked to the stone floor beneath him.

"Shut up." Mihawk hissed vehemently, silencing the former gang king. Turning back to Zoro, the two of them stared each other down. "I am disappointed. I gave you chances that you have merely thrown into the wind." As he spoke, he started to unravel a rope many-thronged whip that Zoro was horrifyingly familiar with. "As for your latest error within which you disobeyed my orders and had the princess see you, not to mention she tried to reject the throne in order to do so, you will receive punishment."

The rope finally unravelled.

* * *

At Westminster Abbey, calm and order had been restored upon Princess Robin's return and numerous apologies, blaming the whole ordeal of her flight on her nerves. She was was now calmly poised on the chair once more, having repeated her responses once more.

"Will you to your power cause Law and Justice, in Mercy, to be executed in all your judgements?"

"I will."

Her heart clenched as the final question was asked, to which she forcedly made the reply.

"These things which I have here before promised, I will perform and keep. So help me God." Robin completed, blinking once but otherwise maintaining a dead look on her face as the crown was ceremoniously lowered onto her head, and a four word chant rose in volume.

"LONG LIVE THE QUEEN."

"LONG LIVE THE QUEEN."

"LONG LIVE THE QUEEN!"

* * *

Zoro screamed for the final time as the rope burned across his back. "GOD DAMN IT." Turning his head to glare at Mihawk, he gasped rapidly. "JUST BECAUSE I WAS NEVER WHAT YOU WANTED ME TO BE. BECAUSE MY MOTHER DIED. BECAUSE I LEFT AND MADE A LIFE FOR MYSELF. ALL OF THIS BECAUSE OF THAT. FUCK. WHY COULDN'T YOU JUST BE PROUD OF ME. FOR ONCE." Zoro yelled as hot angry tears streamed down his face.

Mihawk stilled, his yellow eyes holding conflicting emotions within them as he turned to look at his son.

"I have always been proud of you, Zoro." He whispered. He coughed to clear his throat, making it stronger. "But I cannot, and will not tolerate this. You have forced my hand. Roronoa Zoro...I sentence you to-"

"_DRACULE. MIHAWK._" A female voice thundered. The man in question stiffened, and Zoro stared in shock at his father's reaction. Gol D. Roger's eyebrows nearly shot up to his hairline, watching as a woman strode down the stone floor towards them confidently. "WHAT THE BLOODY HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING TO OUR SON?"

* * *

**_DUN DUN DUUUN~!  
Please review...please...*cries*  
XxxXxxX_**


	17. Author's note (Panicking? Ehehe)

**Hey guys! Don't panic! **

**Just to say that I will /hopefully/ be updating soon. I have NOT abandoned this fic (I mean, hey, I love it way too much), but I warn you that there are going to be some big names coming up, and a LOT of action.**

**Also, the ZOROBIN FLUFF IS ON ITS WAY. AWWWW YEEAAAHH. ;D**

**Ahem. **

**Yes.**

**When I post the next chapter, I'll take this author note down, but don't freak out, because I'm working on it. Ok? **

**I love you all my faithful reviewers! ^^**

**Kai XxxXxxX**


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